US1173757A - Emergency engine-stop mechanism. - Google Patents

Description

T. W. VICKERS.

EMERGENCY ENGINE STOP MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED APR. l5. 19M.

Patented Feb. 29, 1916.

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T. W. VICKERS.

EMERGENCY ENGINE STOP MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED APR. I5. 1914.

1,173,757. Patented Feb.29,1916.

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T. W. VICKERS.

EMERGENCY ENGINE STOP MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 15. 1914.

1,173,757. Patented Feb. 29,1916.

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THEODORE W. VICKERS, OF FORSYTH, MONTANA.

EMERGENCY ENGINE-STOP MECHANISM.

Application filed April 15, 1914.

To all whomit may concern: w

Be it known that I, THEODORE W. VICK- nns, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Forsyth, in the county of Rosebud and State of Montana, have invented a new and Improved Emergency Engine- Stop Mechanism, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to apparatus for automatically stopping an'engine or train when the traffic conditions are such that a collision or other accident-might occur; and the invention relates more particularly to a stop mechanism of that type whereby the propelling power is out off and the air or other brakes set to stop the locomotive, car or train.

The generalobjects of the present invention are to improve and simplify the construction and operation of mechanisms of the character referred to so as to be thoroughly reliable and efficient in use, comparatively inexpensive to manufacture and install, and so designed as to be easily controlled by the engineer for regulating the supply of the propellingenergy.

Another object of the invention is the provisirn of an elastic fluid pressurecontrolled motor for an actuating device, so designed that the throttle lever can be adjusted to vary the position of the throttle valve at the will of the engineer, while at the same time, under'emergency conditions, the motor will operate to automatically clcse the throttle so that the engine will stop, the stopping of the engine being positively provided for by the application of the brakes which are controlled at the same time as the throttle.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a novel electro-magnetically controlled valve device for controlling the supply of compressed air from the air brake system to the motor for the throttle and for releasing the air from the train pipe, so that the brakes will automatically set.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a novel arrangement of circuits and devices for the said electromagnetic controlled valve, whereby under emergency conditions the circuit will be automatically opened by means of a trip, so that the electro-magnet of the said valve will be deenergized and the valve actuated f bya spring or'otheragency to a position Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 29, 1916.

Serial No. 831,987.

where the throttle will be closed and the brakes set, said trip being, actuated by a device arranged alcng the roadbedand so controlled that under emergency conditions it will be disposed in the path of the trip of the locomotive or train so as to actuate the trip.

With such objects in view, and others which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention comprises various novel features of constructirn and arrangement of parts which Will be set forth with particularity in the following description and claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one embodiment of the invention, and wherein similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views, Figure 1 is a side view of a portion of a locomotive showing the stop mechanism applied thereto; Figs. 2 and 3 are sectional views of a throttle operating motor and electro-magnetically controlled valve device for controlling the motor and the brakes of the train, the parts in Fig. 2 being shown in normal position and in-Fig. 3 in emergency position; Fig. 4' is'an end view of the valve device; Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view of the circuit connections.

Referring to the drawing, Adesignatcs a locomotive which has the usual throttle valve B for supplying steam to the engines,

and in connection with the rod 1 of thethrcttle valve is a motor C which is adapted to close the throttle valve under emergency conditions of trafiic, this motor being so designed that a throttle lever or equivalent means 2 may be employed for opening and closing the throttle valve to the desired extent. The motor C comprises, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, a'cylinder 3 in which slides a piston 4 that is connected with the valve rod 1 that extends through a stufling box 5 on the head 6 of the cylinder 3. Between the opposite head 7 of'the cylinder and the piston 4 is a spring 8 which is strong enough to operate through the piston 4 and rod 1 to close the valve B. Air or other elastic fluid is admitted through a pipe 9 to the side of the piston opposite from the spring 8; and the pressure of this fluid is greater than the tension of the spring 8. so that the piston cannot be moved by the spring as long as fluid pressure is acting on the piston in a direction to hold the throt tle valve open. Under emergency conditions the air pressure in the cylinder 3 is released so that the spring can act on the piston to close the valve. The throttle lever 2 is movably connected with the cylinder 3 so as to move the same to any desired position according to the position the throttle valve is to occupy. The lever 2, Fig. l, is fulcrumed at 10 on a bracket or other suitable support 11 and has a yoke 12 which surrounds the cylinder and which is connected with the latter by means of gudgeons or j ournals 13, so that by moving the lever back and forth the position of the cylinder can be changed. WVhen the cylinder is moved to the desired position air pressure is sunplied to the cylinder to act on the piston 4 therein so as to move the valve open. When the throttle valve is open to any extent required and emergency conditions arise to require the throttle to be closed, the air pressure is automatically released from the cylinder 3 and the piston 4 moves in a direction to close the throttle valve while the cylinder 3 is held stationary by the lever 2.

After emergency conditions are removed, the

air pressure is reestablished in the cylinder 3 and the valve is thereby opened, but the extent of opening of the valve will of course beregulated by the engineer, so as to admit steam gradually.

The air for controlling the throttle motor C is derived from the main tank D of the air brake system, and this tank is connected by a pipe 14 with a valve device E, which is in turn connected by a flexible pipe 15 with the pipe 9 ofthe motor cylinder 3. This valve device E is also used to release the air from the train pipe 16, so that the brakes of the locomotive or train will be automatically set, and for this purpose the tank D is connected by a pipe 17 with the valve device E, and the latter is in turn connected by a pipe 18 with the train pipe 16, there 5 being in the pipe 17 an engineer"s valve F.

ner to'move the same to the emergency position shown in Fig. 3. The spring 25 encircles one end of the plunger 19 and is interposed between the piston 20 and a crosshead 26 that is fastened in any suitable manner with the casing 27 of the device E. The piston 20 controls a port 28 that communicates with the motor C through a chamber 29 when the plunger is in the position shown in Fig. 2, and thevalve piston 21 controls the ports 30 and 31 in such a manner that the former is normally open. so that through the chamber 32 the pipe 18 leading from the train pipe will communicate with the engineers valve containing pipe 17, and so that the chamber 29 will be closed to the atmosphere through the port 31. Thepiston 22 controls communication between the chamber 32 and the atmosphere through ports 33 arranged in the end of the casing 27, so as to be covered and uncovered by the piston 22. During normal operation the air is maintained in the cylinder 3 of the throttle motor by passing from the main tank D. of the air brake system through the pipe 14, (Fig. 1) port 28, (Fig. 2) chamber 29, and pipes 15 and 9, and' air pressureis maintained in the train pipe 6 through the pipe 17, port 30, chamber 32 and pipe 18. It will be understood that as soon as the .circuit'of through the uncovered port 31, and furthermore, the train pipe of the air brake, system is opened to the atmosphere through the uncovered ports 33, and the escape of air through the engineers valve is prevented by the port 3O being covered. As soon as normal conditions are restored the electromagnet 24 is energized and thereby replaces the plunger 19 to the position shown in Fig. 2. r 7

As under normal conditions the electromagnet 24 is energized and holds the valve plunger 19 in a position where the throttle motor C will be maintained under air pressure and the brakes of the locomotive or train will be held released, the electro-magnet is in a normally closed circuit that is adapted to be opened under emergency conditions by means of a trip device G shown in Figs. 1 and 5. This trip device comprises relatively movable contacts 35 and 36 which are connected respectively by wires 37 and 38 with. a circuit breaker 39 and a source of current 40, Fig. 5, and these instrumentalities are in turn connected by wires 41 and 42 with the opposite terminalsof the electro-magnet 24. The circuit breaker 39 comprises a pair of contacts 43 and 44 so arranged that the contact 40 is disposed in the path of the piston 22 of the valve device E, so that when the plunger of the latter is released by deenergizing of the magnet 24', such plunger will in moving under the expansion of the spring 25 strike'the contact 44 and separate it from the contact 43 and thereby provide an opening in the circuit of the electromagn t after th said. c rc it h sbeen first opened by the separation of the contact 35 from the contact 36 when the device G is operated by a tripping means arranged along the roadway and disposed in emergency position bya suitable track circuit system or equivalent means. It will be understood that the trip device G may return to closed circuit position, but this will not reenergize the electro-magnet 24:, since the circuit is maintained opened by the circuit breaker 39. When the circuit breaking devices are operated as mentioned, the train is slowed down or stopped. An automatic re-setting means is provided for causing the electromagnet 24; to be reenergized. This means comprises a shunt connection bridging the circuit breaker 39 and formed by the wires i5 and 4:6 and contacts 47 and 48 of a relay 49. The relay 49 is in series with an electric generator H, Figs. 1 and 5, and this generator is connected with some moving part of the locomotive or train, such as the axle 50, to which the armature of the generator is belted, and consequently, as long as the locomotive is traveling at a predetermined rate of speed there will be sufficient current flowing through the relay 49 to hold the spring-actuated contact 4:7 away from the contact 48; and when the speed of the train is lowered by the propelling power being cut off and the brakes operated, the relay 49 will lose its attractive power and permit the contact 47 to engage the contact 48 and thereby complete the circuit of the electro-magnet 24. Accordingly, the plunger 19 of the valve device will move and allow the circuit breaker 39 to close. The circuits are now restored to normal condit on so as to be ready to again operate when the trip device 50 is again struck by a tripping device at some point in the road being set in emergency position. When the train is stopped the engineer immediately throws the lever 2 to the right, thereby moving the cylinder 3 in the same direction and causing the piston i to engage the left end of the cylinder, whereby the air chamber on the right side of the piston will be at its maximum capacity. Consequently, when the apparatus is restored automatically to normal condition by the energizing of the magnet 2%, the compressed air flowing into the cylinder 3 will have no effect on the throttle valve of the locomotive, since this valve cannot open because the piston is engaged with the left end of the cylinder. To start the locomotive it is then necessary for the engineer to move the cylinder 3 to the left to an extent depending upon the amount of opening of the throttle valve desired, as it will be understood that as soon as the cylinder 3 is moved the compressed air therein will cause the piston 4 to follow the movement of the cylinder; or in other words, the piston and cylinder move as a unit as the throttle lever is actuated in a direction to open the throttle valve. As the engine speeds up, the generator H will sutliciently energize the relay 4:9 to cause the shunt around the circuit breaker 39 to be opened and thereby give the trip device G control of the circuit of the electro-magnet 24 of the valve device E.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the advantages of the construction and method of operation will be readily understood by those skilled in the art to which the invention appertains, and while I have described the apparatus which I now consider to be the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that the apparatus shown is merely illustrative, and that such changes may be made when desired as are within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. An engine stop apparatus comprising a device for throwing on or off the propelling power, a piston and cylinder motor, the cylinder of the mrtor being movable, an engineers controller for adjusting the position of the cylinder to control the'piston, a spring tending to move the piston and thereby the device to oii position, and a valve de vice for supplying to the cylinder fluid for actuating the piston and device to on position.

2. An engine stop apparatus comprising a device for throwing on and off the propelling power, a piston connected with the device, a movable cylinder in which the piston moves, a spring disposed in the cylinder and acting on the piston to move the device to off position, an engineers lever connected with the cylinder to move the same to different positions and thereby control the movement of the piston, a valve for applying fluid pressure to the piston to act in 0pposition to the spring for moving the device to on position, and electrical means for controlling the movement of the valve under emergency conditions.

3. A train stopping apparatus comprising a valve device controlling the setting and releasing of the brakes of the train and the throwing on and ofi' of the propelling power, said device including a reciprocating element, a normally energized electro-magnet for controlling the said device, a normally closed trip-opened switch in circuit with the electr c-magnet and adapted to automatically close after being trip-actuated, a circuit breaker in the circuit of the switch and electro-magnet and arranged to be engaged and moved open by the said element of the valve device when the electro-magnet is deenergized, and a shunt around the said circuit breaker controlled by the rate otspeed of the train to reenergize the electro-magnet and restore the said valve device and circuitclosed trip-opened switch in circuit with the electro-magnet and adapted to automatically close after being trip-actuated, a circuit breaker in the circuit of the switch and electro-magnet and arranged to be engaged and moved open by the said element of the valve device when the electro-magnet is deenergized, a normally opened shunt around the circuit breaker, and electrical means operative when the train is traveling at a predetermined speed to hold the shunt open, and adapted when the speed falls below such point to close the shunt circuit for reenergizing the electro-magnet to restore the valve device and circuit breaker to normal condition.

5. An engine stop apparatus comprising a valve device including a movable element for automatically setting or releasing the brakes of the train and throwing on and otl the propelling power, a normally energized electrical means for holding the said element of the valve device in train running position, a circuit for the said means, a switch in the said circuit and including a movable and fixed contact, a movablv mounted member carrying the movaole contact and arranged to be operated by a striking device located along the roadway of the train, means for auto matically restoring the said member to closed circuit position after the said device passes,

a circuit breaker comprising normally engaged contacts in the said circuit for ma1ntaining the circuit open by the actuation of e the valve device to stop position whereby the said element engages one of the contacts and moves it away from the other, and means dependent upon the speed of the train for reenergizing the electrical means to restore the valve device and circuit breaker to normal condition. V

' In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of the subscribing witnesses.

THEODORE W. VICKERS. V 7

Witnesses:

W. E. STEVENS, ARTHUR BLAND.

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

' Washington, D. 0.

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