US1535923A - Mechanical time release - Google Patents

Description

April 28, 1925.

`1,5.-5,9?3'v I Rc. LEAKE f 'MECHANICAL TIME RELEASE Filed Feb, 10J 1920 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. l.

pr Z8, 1925.

R. C. LEAKE MECHANICAL TIME RELEASE 3 Sheeucs-Sheef 2 Filed Feb. l0, 1920 TORNE April 28, 1925.

R. c. LEAKE MECHANICAL TIME RELEASE Filed Feb. 10, 1920 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 FIGB.

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Patented Apr. 28, 1925.

.IFT ED" STA 'F ES N` T OF F l CE.

RICHARD U. IiEll-E, UF" ROCJEESTER; NEW YORK, AElElGNGEt T0 RAILWAY.

SGNAL CMPNY, GROCHESTER, NEW YGBIQA CRPOR/ATIONI @F NEW`YORK,

Application filed February 10, 1920. Serial No. 357,639.

To all 'u1/0m 'it may concern.'

lie it known that l. RICHARD C. l'lnAirn, a citisen or the United States, and resident oi' the cit)7 of Rechester, in the county of Monroe and State of New Yorlr, have inven ed anew and usefulV h'lecliai-uical Time lelease, of which the following is ay speciiica t i on.

This invention relates topmechanical.time releases which are particularly adapted for use in connection with the levers oi'f inter- .,b machines for railways. hflechanical tinic releases are commonly applied in practice to av lcv-er oi" :ininter- `locking;` machine for the purpose ot prevent# ma` movementy of said lever *from*` one posi-` tion to another until a-'Eter the lapse of a predetermined time. `lVhen the release. is applied to a lever', for example,. a` signal lever, the operator in a tower', havingl set p a route for air appreaching` train and calcari-id the signal, may return` the lever to its normal indication positionl` and put 'the signal to stop; but on account of. the time release mechanism, the 'operator is prevented vfrom returning the lever toitsv inlh normalposition so as -to releasethe mechanical locking` oli a conflicting route, until after the lapse el' a: predetermined'timev for which the time release is adjusted. a .mechanical time release of. this type is disclosed in the patent. to` HL B. Taylor,

No; 1,245,183, dated October 30, 191,7; and? the present invention 1s an improvement upon this particular construction..

U e ohject'oit the present invention` is 'to improve the constructionY of' mechanical releases of the type vdescribed and pro- `vide a simple, reliable and eliicient device,

which comprises *few and simple parts, and which can he easily and cheaply manufactured. i

(.lthor detaill -olijects and advantages will appear hereinafter during the. description olf the invention.

In describing' the invention in dctaihre'tercnce will he made to the accompanyingA drawings, in which like reference'characters designate correspondingl parts in the several views, and1 in whiclie Figure l is a side elevationA of my ,improved tiinerelease mechanism applied 'to a lever of an interlocking; machine, one ,oli the side vplates of the mechanism being` Une i form oi.

broken away and some parts shown in section `for the sake of clearness;

Fig'. 2' is an' enlarged horizontal'` section taken substantially on the line 9f-2` in Fig. l", with the cover and hase omitted; i

Figs. 3 and 3A' are detail views;

Fig. l is af diagrammatic view, partly in perspective, with certain pabrts broken away and spread apart for the salie of clcarness1 which shows in a simplified manner the principalv operating` parts oi:l my improved time release mechanism in positions correspending,` to the normal position oi" the lever;

Fig. 5 is fragmentary view similar Fig. 1l, which shows the positions or" the loclr bolt, the driving` plunger and associated? parts when the lever is in the reverse position;

Fig. 6 is a verticaltransverse section on the line 6 6 inlilig. l, and

Z is a fragmentary horizontal section on the line 7 in Figui. v

'lhe mechanical time release mechanism emhodying'vV my invention comprises iii general a hase ir which is secured to the lever guides by bolts or other suitalileineans (not shown) above the usualI slidahle har or lever L. This hase A is .provided near its ends with integrali lugs l to 'which' rectangular side plates 2 are fastened h v screws rllhese side plates'Q constitute 'the supports for the various operating` parts and are connected together hy spacingl studs 41a in the way commonly employed in `clhcliworl; mechanisms. The timing: mechanismv is of the clockwork type, and comprises a` train oiigears, mounted on transverse shafts supported hy the side plates 2, and driven by a coiled spring 5. The springt is scoured at one end to a main shaftI (l by the usual pin and slot connection, and its other end is looped around pin 7 lined in one oit' the side plates 2, said spring` being conlined h v smaller pins 8` fined'V in said side plate. Tlieinain shaft 6 is connected by pawl andratchet of ordinary construction to the lirst gear wheel 9 oi the nean train. In the construction shown sce Fig.. 3) the gear 9 carries spring pressed pawlsl() which cooperate with the teetliof a ratchet wheel ll fastened. to or integral with said.v main shaiit (il in vsuch a manner that when the main shalt is rotated in one direction,-coil spring 5 is wound up without operating the gear train, and when the spring is permitted to unwind, the main shaft drives the gear train. r"he gear train includes a pinion 12 on a shaft 18, large gear 1l driven by said pinion, and a second pinion 15 on a shaitt 16. in escapeinent wheel 1'? is secured to the sli-att 1G, and a weighted pallet 18 loosely mounted on a transverse shaft or pin 19, cooperates with said escapement wheel 17 to li iit thc speed at which the gears in the 'train may rotate while driven by the spring 5. The arms ot the pallet 18 are provided with holes by means ci which additional weights 2() (see Fig. 3A) may be added to change the weighting of said pallet and thus vary the timing oit the apparatus. ri`he clockufork mechanism above described is wound up and vauton'iatically released by the lever L. To the main shaft 6 is iiied a pinion 21 which meshes with a gear sector loosely journaled on a shat't 28 supported in the side plates 2. rhis gear sector 22 has an arm 2st in which is threaded a vertically adjustable screw 25, the end ot said arni being split and provided with a clamping screw 2G (see Fig. 2) tor the purpose ot locking the adjusting screw `Loosely journaled on the shaft 23 are two parallel rocking levers 27, preferably arranged on opposite sides et the sector gear 22 and spaced from the adjacent side plates by collars rlhese levers 27 are connected near one end by two transverse pins 29 and 30 held in place by cotter pins. @ne pin 30 is connected to the upper end ot a vertically movable driving plunger 81 which extends downufard between two rocking levers 27 (see Figs. 4t and 7) and passes loosely through a guiding hole in the base A, the lower end of said plunger being beveled for the purpose hereinafter explained. The other pin 29 is arranged to strike the adjusting screw 25 when the driving plunger 81 and the levers 2? are raised.

Between the inner ends of the levers 27 is a vertically movable lock bolt B which has a lower rounded portion 82 extending downward through a guiding hole in the base A. The upper portion of this bolt B is biturcated or split to torni two side portions 33 straddling the gear sector (sec Fig. 6); and said bolt is guided near its upper end by two transverse pins 3l secured to the side plates 2. Near the upper end of the bolt B is a transverse pin 35, and on each side of said bolt is a plunger 3G having an enlarged eye loosely mounted on. said pin and held thereon by a cotter pin. The lower end ot each plunger is guided in an angle bracket 8T secured to the corresponding side plate 2. A compression spring 38 surrounds each plunger 38, and bears against the bracket 3? and the head ot said plunger, so as to urge said plunger and lock bolt i3 upward to the position shown in Figs. l and d, said upward movement heilig limited by a small transverse pin in each plunger 3G engaging the corresponding bracket 87. Each side portion 33 ot' the lock bolt B is cut away to leave a shoulder ll0 arranged to be engaged by a latch dog 41 pivotally mounted on a pin Ll2 iixed in the side plates 2. This latch dog 41 is thrown into its latehing position by a sj ring 43, and is disposed so as to be struck and released by a shoulder irl ot the gear sector 22 (see Figs. 4- and 5). Fixed in the bolt B below levers 27 is a pin 39.

ln the construction illustrated l have made provision for the operation ot a circuit controller in conjunction with the locking and unlocking oit the bolt B. rl`his circuit controllcr comprises a contact pin 45 extending transversely through a block d6 ot insulating material which is secured to the upper end ot the lock bolt B bv the pin 35 which supports the plungers 3G. 'l'his contact pin 475 is arranged to bridge a pair ot fixed contact lingers Ll, when the lock bolt B is raised. rl`hesc Contact lingers il-7, together with their retainers 18 are clamped by binding posts 19 to a block 50 oi insulating material which rests on the top edges of the side plates 2 and which is clamped 'thereto by a hook bolt 51 (see Fig. 1). To protect the mechanism from dirt or inalicious tampering, it is preferably enclosed in a suitable sheet metal cover 52, which is held in place by a thumb nut 53 on the hook bolt 51, a suitable seal being provided 'tor this thumb nut 58, if desired. f

For the purpose ot informing the operator that the lock bolt B has been withdrawn, l provide a striker 5l which coniprises a ball on the end of the wire loosely mounted on one of the guide pins l-l, said rod being struck by the jump of the lock bolt B to its unlocked position and being thereby flung against the cover 52 so as to give distant click.

For the purpose of illustrating and e3:- plaining the operation of my improved time release mechanism, l have shown it in connection with one ot the slidable levers used in one well known type or interlocking niachine. rThis lever L comprises a rectangular bar mounted edgewise in suitable, guides (not shown) so that it may be slid baci: and forth, a suitable handle being provided to facilitate its manual operation. This lever L has a cam slot 5G (see Figs. 1 and rl) formed thereon in which is disposed a roller 57 carried by the upper end ot a tappet rod 58 forming part ot' the usual mechanical interlocking of such machines. ln the upper edge ot the lever L a notch is eut out to torni a shoulder 59 and an incline GO. rl`he lever has four significant positions, a lull normal position shown in Figs. 1 and l, a

llO

:.,eeegees normal indication position, a reverse indication position shown in llig. and a fullereverse position. 1n connection with theoperation of this invention, it should be understood that When the lever is moved from the lull reverse position, the mechanical interlocking is not released until the lever reaches its i'ull normal position and moves the roller 5'? and tappet bar 58 to its lovvermost position; and the purpose of my time release mechanism is to prevent such movement to the full normal position until after the lapse of a certaintime.

Opcm'c'mtf-Thc lever L is shown in lliggs. 1 and el in its full normal position, and the parts ot the time release mechanism in correspondingl position. lfllhen the lever la is moved to the reverse indication position shown in F 5 (to the right as viewed in lilies. l and the incline 60 of the notch in said lever engages the beveled end ot the drivingy plunger 3l and `forces it up iard, therehvr rocking` the levers 2i" which in turn strike pin 3l) and project the loclr bolt ll downward, against the, opposition or" the springs 38, to the position in back of the shoulder 59, as shown in 5. Duringl this upward movement oi' the driving' plunger ,31, the adj'Listing` screw Q5 is struck b v the pin 29 in the levers 2?, otter the space normally intervening between said pin and screw has been taken up, and 'thus roclisthe gear sector Q2, rotating the pinion 21 and the main shaft G in the countercloclwise direction, tliereb7 Winding` up the coil spring 5 Without turning` the gear 9, since the pawls 10 click idly over the teeth of the ratchet Wheel 1l. iis the gear sector 22 is moved, the latch dogg; il is swung b v the spring; into engagement with the shoulders i0 on the lock bolt l. [is long as the lever L remains in the reverse or reverse indication position, the driving.;` plunger 31 is held up and the parts ot the timing;` mechanism cannot operate.

lf now the lever L is moved toward its normal position (to the left as viewed in .Figa 5), the shoulder strikes the lool: bolt and prevents movement or said lever bevond the normal indication position. "lhe driving plunger 3l, however, is no longer held up, and the coil spring' tree to rotate the main shaft 6 clockwise, driving gear 9 through pawls l() and ratchet Wheel 1l., and thesescapement Wheel 17 through the other gears of the train. As the escapement Wheel 1"? is rotated, the pallet 1S is oscillated, so that this return movement oit the main shaft 6 taires place slowly at a rate determined b v the Weight of the arms of the pallet 18. Alter the lapse of time for Which the device is adjusted, the `gear sector 22 is moved h v the coil spring' 5 lar enough to trip the latch dog` eil, thereby releasing` the loelr bolt 13 and permitting it to be snapped up by the springs 38. This releases the lever L and permits it being moved to its full normal position. The operator is advised ot the unlocking' operation by the click oit the striker 54- on the cover 52.

From the orepjoing it can be seen that my time release mechanism prevents a. lever being returned to its full normal position,

ter it has been moved to the reverse position, until after tlielapse of a predetermined interval o'lf time. Thus, after the operator has set up one route, and has cleared the signal governing treiic over this rente by putting` the lever li to the reverse position, he is able to change the signal bacl to stop, ineparatory to changing` the route, by putting the lever L back to its normal indication position, but is unable to put the lever hack to its full normal position and release the mechanical interlocking controlling the levers lor the switches, derails or the like et the route in question.

lit, there'liore, the signal governing;l the route has heen cleared and a train has aecepled that sipgi'ial, there vvill ordinarilyv be time enough Yfor the train to pass through the plant before the operator can change the switches or derails or' the route. Other features and advantages of siich a time checl: upon the operator is provided b v my invention are Well known in practice and need not Je specifically explained.

The time or operation olf the device may be adjusted by screvving;` the adjusting screw in or out, thus waiyiiiel spacerbetiveen said screw and the pin llhis in turn varies the extent to which the sector 22 is rocked, and, therefore', the amount ot timed movement it must make when released betere tripping the latch oog' The timingl maniT also be varied by changln.j the Weight of the arms ci the pallet 18.

rIihe construction of the time release mechanism shown and described comprises in general the same organization and arrangement of parts disclosed in the Taylor patent above mentioned; and for brevity this prior construction Will be referred to in the claims as the time release mechanism or the character described.

1tegal-ding` the specific improvements constituting the present invention, among other things it will. be noted that the loch bolt B is s spendcd from its upper end, beingl guided at its lower end bv the hole in the base A and at its middle bv the pins 3l bearing against `its edges. This construction prevents binding` or weer of the parts, since the springs 36 act directlyY on line with the bolt toliit it without forcing; it sidervise.

1n addition to the adjustment ot the time interval oli the mechanism ailorded b v the screw 25, which varies the extent ol Windmovement oit the time controlled mechanism, provision is made for easily changing1 alla the Weight of the pallet 18, so as to adapt the parts for a wider range of timing operation than could be conveniently obtained by adjustment of the screw 25.

rEhe circuit controlling feature may be used or omitted, as desired. lts use provides ior the opening and closing oi a circuit corresponding to the locked and unlocked position ot the lever, this circuit for instance beingl the indication circuit; and in some arrangements such circuit controlling means may he used to advantage.

Obviously, the exact construction shown and described may he modified and changed Without departing from my invention, and l desire to have it understood that the particular embodiment selected is merely illustrative.

lilfhat I claim as new and desire Yto secure by Letters Patent ot the United States, is:

ln a time release mechanism ot the character described, the combination "with a lever, a vertically movable locking bolt actuated hy said lever and adapted to prevent movement ot said lever in one. direction in a predetermined position thereof, and circuit controlling means automatically opened and closed in correspondence wi th the movement of said bolt to its locking and unlocking positions.

2. ln a time release mechanism of Ithe specilic character described, the comhination with a lever, a vertically movable locking` holt automatically projected by the movement oi said lever into position to lock said lever against movement in one direction in a predetermined position thereof, a circuit controller actuated by said bolt and opened and closed respectively as the bolt assumes its locking and unlocking` positions.

3. A mechanical time release for levers o interlocking' machines, comprising tivo side plates arranged side loy side and separated by spacing' studs, a contact block mounted on the edges of said side plates and clamped in position by a hook bolt adapted to hook under one of said spacing studs and provided With clampingv nuts for holding,- the block, circuitcontrolling means carried lu' said contact block and secured thereto hy binding posts, and time controlled means actuated by the movement oi' the lever tor opening' and closing` said circuit controllingl means.

4t. A mechanical time release tor levers ot interlocking machines, coniprising tivo side plates arranged side by side and separated by spacinp` studs, a contact block mounted on the edges of said plates and clamped in position by a hook holt adapted to hook under one of said spacine studs and provided uith clamping` nuts ttor holding the hlock. circuit controlling means carried hy said contact block and secured thereto hy hinding posts, and time controlled means actuated mechanically hy the movement ot the lever lor locking and unlocking said lever and Al'or opening and closing the circuit controlling' means in accordance with the locked and unlocked condition of the lever.

n a time release mechanism of the character described, the combination with the locking holt, its latch and the spring` actuated time controlled means for relcasin the latch, ot adjustable means for varying the extent of Winding movement of the time controlled means for the same niovement et the locking holt, and a pallet adapted to have weights attached thereto, ivherehy coarse and fine adjustments of the timing; operation o'l' said mechanism may he ol tained.

RCHARD C. LEA KE.

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