US1429689A

US1429689A - Coupling-release mechanism

Info

Publication number: US1429689A
Application number: US445291A
Authority: US
Inventors: John F O'connor
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1921-02-16
Filing date: 1921-02-16
Publication date: 1922-09-19
Anticipated expiration: 1939-09-19

Description

J. F. O'CONNOR.

COUPLING RELEASE MECHANISM.

APPLICATION man FEB. 16, 1921.

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d 2 4 m a 9 My W F T 1 Wafwsw Patented Sept. 19, 19.22

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JOHN F. oooniv'on, or cnioaeo, rrmnors, ASSIGNOR 'ro WI LIAM r-r. MINER, on

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COUPLING-RELEASE MECHANISM.

T 0 all i071 am it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN F. GCoNNoR, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Coupling-Release Mechanism, of which the following is. a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

This invention relatesto improvements in coupler release mechanism.

One object of the invention is to provide a simple and relatively inexpensive connection to be employed between the usual operating lever and usual lock pin of a conpler release mechanism.

More specifically, the object of the invention is to provide a connector of the type above indicated which may be readily applied without the aid of any special tools and also without the necessity of unmounting the coupler lever in order to thread the connector in the usual eye of such lever.

In the drawing forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a side elevational view of the end portion of a car showing the usual coupler and coupler lever with my improved connector employed therewith. Figure 2 is an end elevation showing more particularly the connector as applied. Figure 3 is a perspective view of one of the elements constituting a part of the improved connector. And Figure l is an enlarged horizontal sectional view corresponding substantially to the line 4c4: of Figure 2.

In said drawing, the coupler head is indicated at 10, the same being provided with a vertical lock or lift pin 11 having an opening or eye 12 therein as customary. An operating lever of usual form is indicated at 13, the same having a handle let at its outer end and a normally horizontally extending arm 15 at its inner end as customary; said arm 15 having an opening or eye 16 at its end normally disposed substantially above the lock pin.

The improved connector, as shown, comprises two preferably like elements A-A.. Each of said elements, as clearly shown in Figure 3, is in the form of a substantially elongated loop having parallelly extending side arms 17.17 connected by a somewhat diametrically enlarged partial ring 18. At their free ends, each arm 17 is formed with a semi-circular hook 19 having the end 20 thereof turned inwardly and in this connection it will be observed that the hooks 19 extend in planes substantially perpendicular to the plane defined by the two arms 1717. Immediately above the hooks 19, inwardly extended otfsets 2121 are formed, thereby reducing the distance between the arms 17 at said points.

Each element A is preferably made of forged inherently resilient bar or rod metal of the form shown in Figure 3. l/Vith this arrangement, it is evident that one element A may be threaded through the opening 16 of the lever 15 by simply spreading the two ends 20. Similarly the other ele ment A is threaded through the opening 12 of the lock pin, after which the two elements A-A may be sprung over each other so as to have the hooks 19 of the one slidably telescoped with respect to the arms 1717 of the other. As will be understood, the

length of the elements AA is made such that the distance between the plane defined by one set of hooks 19 and the plane defined by the other set of hooks 19 will correspond to the desired amount of lost motion to ac commodate longitudinal and radial movements of the coupler with respect to the release lever. As will be apparent from the foregoing, the connector may be assembled with the other parts of the coupler release mechanism without the aid of any special tools and when once in place cannot become accidentally disengaged. By forming the offsets 21 as shown and described, it is evident that the arms of one element must be spread a greater distance in being slipped over or removed from the arms of the other element than would otherwise be the case if the arms 17 of both elements were left perfectly straight and hence the offsets 21 function to prevent accidental disengagement of the two elements either by reason of service conditions or by reason of such inaccuracies as may occur in manufacture.

I claim:

1. In a coupler release mechanism having a lock pin provided with an opening at its upper end and a release lever havin an opening therein disposed substantially a ove the lock pin: a connector comprising two loosely connectedloops, each loop being substantially of elongated U form with the ends of each arm thereof hooleshaped, the

hook-shaped ends of each loop extending in a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane defined by the arms of the loop,

the hook shaped ends of one loop being slidable longitudinally of and onthe arms of the other loop. v

2. In a coupler release mechanism having a lock pin provided With an opening at the 2 top thereof and a releaselever having an opening therein disposed substantially above the lock pin: a connector comprising two 7 like elements each formed of inherently resilient rod materiaheach'of said elements being in the form oi a substantially elongated loop and having the ends thereof hookshapedfthe hook shaped ends extending in a plane substantially perpendicular to the planedefined by the arms of the loop, the

- hook-shaped ends of one element being slidhave hereunto subscribed my ably telescope d on the arms of the other element.

3; As an article of manufacture, an element of a connector for coupler release mechanisms adapted to be employed With another cooperating element, said element being 'formed of resilient bar material and of elongated-,U-shape, the ends of the arms being bent to hook form with the ends of the 'hooks opposed to each other, said hookformed ends being disposed in a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane-defined by the arms, each of said arms having an- UNA C. PERIN.