US1479100A - Car coupler - Google Patents

Description

Jan 1,

CAR COUPLER Filed April 5, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet l Jan. 1, 1924 1,479,100

w. KELSO CAR COUPLER Filed April 5, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 gnueufoz 4 Quanta Patented Jan. 1, 1924..

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM KELSO, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOK TO THE MOGONWAY &

TORLEY COMPANY. OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENN- SYLVANIA.

CAR COUPLER.

Application filed April 5,

To all 111/? cm it may concern Be it known that 1. WILLIAM KnLso, a citizen of the United F tates. residing at Pittsburgh. in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania. have invented certain new and useful Improven'ients in Car Couplers: and I do hereby declare the fol lowing to be a full. clear, and exact description of the inveutioiu such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to the construction if car couplers of the Master Car Builders type and particularly to that form commonly known as the standard D-coupler.

The principal object of the invention is to provide simple and reliable means for preventing the coupler lock from accidentally moving to an unlocked position when the device is in service.

Generally stated, the principal feature of the invention consists in actuating the vertically movable and rearwardly swinging lock of a D-coupler by means of a lock lifter formed with a pin which is inclined with respect to the axis of swinging movement of the lock and which serves to shift the lifter from beneath a shoulder upon the coupler head when the lifter is caused to execute 0 an unlocking movement, the lifter normally occupying a position beneath the said shoulder such that it is prevented from moving upwardly and therefore serves to restrain the lock to which it is connected from performing an accidental unlocking movement.

In the drawings which illustrate my invention as applied to the Master Car Builders standard D-coupler,-

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional View of the mechanism, the lock, knuckle opener, lock lifter and means for actuating the latter being shown in elevation and in locked position.

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the 6 construction shown in Fig. 1, portions of the device being broken away and the parts being shown in locked relation.

Fig. 3 is a detail view corresponding to Fig. 2. showing a portion of the mechanism therein illustrated, the parts being in the positions they occupy when the coupler lock is released for an unlocking movement.

Fig. 4 is a detail View partly in elfivation 1923. Serial No. 680,138.

and partly in longitudinal section showing the relation assumed by the lifter and lock when the latter has been released from the control of the means for preventing its accidental unlocking.

In the drawings, 1 indicates the coupler head and 2 is the knuckle pivotally mounted thereon by means of the usual knuckle pin 3. The knuckle 2 is normally restrained from performing an uncoupling rotation by means of a vertically sliding and rearwardly swinging lock 4 which is su ported when in locked position upon a horizontally rotatable knuckle opening lever 5 operating within the coupler head. The upper part of the lock 4 is of comparatively large and heavy cross section and normally stands in the path of movement of the tail of the knuckle while the lower portion of the lock is in the form of a leg 6 which extends downwardly so as to pro ect through an opening 7 in the lower wall of the coupler head, After the lock 4 has been raised vertically a suiticient distance to permit outward rotation of the knuckle 2, the depending leg 6 swings rearwardly and by pressing against the adjacent end of the knuckle opener 5 causes the latter to rotate. thereby throwing the knuckle to open position in the well understood manner.

While the standard Dcoupler is provided with means designed to prevent the lock from creeping upward and thus accidentally assuming an unlocked position, the nature of the parts of the device and their relations are such that the desired result is not unfailingly accomplished under all circumstances. The specific object of the present invention is to remedy this detect. 0 this end the leg 6 of the lock is provided near its lower end with an opening. socket or recess 8 which is inclined in a direction transversely of the coupler head and which preferably is of circular cross section, the higher end of said opening beinghat the side of the lock which is adjacent t e knuckle. This inclined recess receives apin 9 carried by and preferably cast integral with a lock lifter member 10 whose upper end 11 normally stands under the usual anti-creep shoulder or lug 12 with which the head of the D-coupler is provided at a point adjacent the side of the lock 4 opposite the knuckle 2. The pin 9 which preferably circular in cross section is oi someivhat less diameter than the opening 8 in the lower end of the lo k 4. thus enabling the lock litter 10 to have a swinging movement to ward the lock resulting-in the withdrawal of the upper end of said litter from beneath the anticreep shoulder 12 of the coupler head, a well as providing, clearance for allowing the pin 9 to turn within the opening 8 of the lock so as to permit said lock to execute its rearward swinging movement. The upper end 1] of the lock lifter may advantageously be inclined or beveled, as shown. to correspond substantially to the inclination of the pin 9, thereby enabling the upper end of said litter to stand but a short distance below the antiereep shoulder 12 of the coupler head when the parts are in locked position, and at the same time thereby affording sufiicient clearance between said shoulder and the lifter to permit the latter to pass from beneath the anticreep shoulder. By this means the upper end of the lifter l0 is caused to engage the anti-creep lug 12 when the lock has moved upwardly a very short distance.

The lifter 10 is preferably actuated by a swinging arm or lever 13 pivotally mounted upon the under side of the coupler head 1 by means of a pin 14. This operating lever 13 and the manner of pivotally mounting it upon the coupler head may advantageously be. identical with similar features of construction of the standard D-coupler. The lifter 10 is pivotally connected to the swinging lever 13 by means of a pivot pin or rivet 15, the connection between the parts 10 and 13 being such that the lifter 10 is capable not only of executing a pivotal movement in the direction of length of the coupler, but also of swinging transversely of the coupler so as to cause its inclined pin 9 to slide in the recess or opening 8 of the lock.

Except for the difierences heretofore described the parts of the coupler mechanism are preferably constructed like the corre sponding parts of the standard D-coupler. It will be appreciated, however. that while my invention is especially applicable to the D type of coupler, it is susceptible of application to other forms of coupler mechanism as well.

When the lever 13 is swung upwardly in the operation of unlocking the oupler the upward movement of the lock lifter 10 with respect to the lock causes the inclined pin 9 to slide inwardly in the corres onding inclined opening 8 at the lower end of the lock 4, thus causing the upper end 1]. of the lifter to move from beneath the cooperating shoulder 12 of the coupler head 1. When the upper end of the lifter has thus been withdrawn from beneath the shoulder 12 the continued upward movement of the operat ing member 13 and lifter l0 efi'eets an extended unlocking movement of the lock 4.

I claim:

1. in a car coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotally mounted thereon, a vertically movable and rearwardly swinging lock for said knuckle. and a lock lifter for actuating said lock, said lifter being slidably and pivotally connected to said lock so as to be capable of sliding with respect thereto transversely of said head and also being capable of pivotin with respect to said lock when the latter executes its rearward swinging movement, and said head having a shoulder which is adapted to cooperate with said lifter when the latter is in locked position to prevent said lock from accidentally moving to unlocked position.

2. In a car coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotallv mounted thereon, a vertically movable and rearwardly swinging lock for said knuckle,

and a lock lifter for actuating said lock,

said lifter being rotatably connected to said lock to permit the latter to execute its swinging movement and being movable laterally toward said knuckle to withdraw it from beneath a shoulder upon the coupler head, and said head being provided adjacent the side of the lock which is opposite the knuckle with a shoulder adapted to cooperate with said lifter to prevent said lock from accidentally moving to unlocked position.

3. In a car coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotally mounted thereon, a lock for said knuckle, and. a lock lifter for actuating said lock, said head being provided with a shoulder adapted to be engaged by said lifter to prevent said lock from accidentally moving to unlocked position, said lock being capable of swinging movement and having a recess which is inclined transversely of the coupler head, and said lifter being provided with a pin which is inclined with respect to the axis of swinging movement of said lock and which extends into and is adapted to slide and turn within said recess.

4. In a car coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotally mounted thereon, a lock for said knuckle, said lock being adapted to have a swinging movement, a lock lifter for actuating said lock, and means for operatively connecting said lifter to said lock to permit the latter to execute its swinging movement, said head being provided with a shoulder adapted to be engaged by said lifter to prevent said lock from accidentally moving to unlocked position, and'said means involving a pin which is inclined with res ect to the axis of swinging movement 0 said lock and llt) which serves to shift said lifter from beneath said shoulder when the lifter is caused to execute an unlocking movement.

5. In a car coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotally mounted thereon, a lock for said knuckle adapted to have a swinging movement, and a lock lifter for actuating said lock, said lifter and lock having a pin and recess connection, said pin being inclined to the horizontal, and said head being provided with a shoulder adapted to be engaged by said lifter to prevent said lock from accidentally moving to unlocked position.-

6. In a car coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotally mounted thereon, a vertically movable and rearwardly swinging lock for said knuckle, and a lock lifter for actuating said lock, said lifter being provided with a pin which is inclined to the horizontal, said lock having an opening which is inclined to correspond substantially to said pin and within which said pin is slidable, and said head being provided with a shoulder adapted to be engaged by said lifter to prevent said lock from accidentally moving to unlocked position.

7. In a car coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotally mounted thereon, a lock for said knuckle adapted to have a swinging movement, a lock lifter for actuating said lock, and means pivotally mounted on said coupler head for actuating said lifter, said liftei being provided with a in which is inclined to the horizontal, said lock being formed with a correspondingly inclined opening into which said pin extends, said lifter and said means for actuating it being pivotally connected b means permitting said pin to slide in said openin and said head being formed with a shou der adapted to be enaged by said lifter to prevent said lock om accidentally moving to unlocked position.

8. In a car coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotall' mounted thereon, a lock for said knuckle capable of swinging movement, and a lock lifter for actuating said lock, said lifter bein pivotally connected to said lock and capa le of sliding with respect thereto transversely of the plane of swinging movement of said lock, and said head having a shoulder adapted to cooperate with said lifter when the latter is in locked position to prevent said lock from accidentally movin to unlocked position.

n testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

WILLIAM KELSO.

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