US1548979A - Safety device for railway crossings - Google Patents

Description

Aug 11,1925. 1,548,979

T, R. BUTCHART SAFETY navma FOR RAILWAY dRossINes .iled Sept. 16, 192

Patented Aug. 11, 1%25.

THOMAS R, BUTCLFIAR-T, OFMB-ED can, IOWA.

Application filed September 16, 1924. Serial No. 738,064.

To all whom it may concern:

, Be it known that I, THOMAS R. BU'roHAn'r, a citizen of the'UnitedState s, residing at Red Oak, in the county of Montgomery and State of Iowa, have invented certain'new and useful lmprovements in a Safety Device for Railway Crossings, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a safety device for railroad crossings and has for its principal Object to provide a means for preventing motor vehicles traveling at an excessive rate of speed upon a highway when the vehicle is about to approach a railway crossing. a

' One of the important objects of the present'inventionis to provide a safety device of the above mentioned character, wherein means is placed in the highway adjacent the opposite sides of therails for causing motorists to drive cautiously upon approaching a railway"crossing, said means further causing the operator'of a vehicle to have aafull view of therails on both sides of the highway so that he may'readily ascertain whether or not a train 'is approaching the'crossing.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a safety device of the aboveinentioned character, which may be readily and easily placed in position in the highway adjacent the opposite sides of the rails for causing a vehicle to travel in an irregular course whereby the speed of the vehicle will be retarded to such an extent as to enable the operator of a vehicle to have full control of the same and prevent any possibility of a collision with an approaching train which would ordinarily result if the vehicle was traveling at an excessive rate of speed across the highway and the railway crossing.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent during the course of the following description.

In the drawing forming a part of this specification and in which like numerals designate like parts throughout the same:

Figure 1 is a. top plan view of a railway crossing showing my improved safety device positioned in the highway.

Figure 2 is a top plan view of one of the sections.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal section taken approximately on line 33 of Figure 2, and

Figure 4 is a'transverse section taken on line it-At of Figure 2.

In the drawing wherein for the purpose of llustration is shownthe preferred embodiment of my invention," tlie numeral 1 designatesgenerally a railway crossing, the rallsbeing illustrated at'2 and the highway or road at Extending transverselyacross the highway or road 8 on each side of the rails 2 and at a suitable distance therefrom are the safety devices i and 5' respectively. Each of the safety devices comprises a'pliirality of abutting sections designated by the numeral 6, the same being formed preferably of concrete. r

Each of the sections 6 has formed thereon intermediate the sloping or diagonal parallel sides thereof, the obstruction'or hump 7. The ends of each hump are flattened as is illustrated at8 and when allof the sections in each ofthe'units' are in assembled'relation, the humps in one of the units will be disposed in one direction while thehumps of the adjacent unit will be'disposed in the opposite direction. This is more "clear- 1y illustrated in Figure 1, wherein the section and humps of the" "unit 4 are disposed so that a motorist must steer his automobile "diagonally of the roadway, in order-to avoid crossing thelnimp at this section, and then in an opposite angular direct-ion across the roadway, to avoid cross ing the humps of the next adjacent section. He will thus be forced to view the tracks on both sides of the roadway in successive order as he drives his automobile over the units and avoiding the hump-s.

The units which are arranged on each side of the rails are spaced a suitable distance from each other and it is obvious that when a vehicle traveling on the highway 3 on either side of the crossing l encounters the safety devices, the vehicle will necessarily have to be operated at a low rate of speed and the wheels of the vehicle will travel over the upper surfaces of the abutting sections in such a manner as to cause the wheels to travel between the adjacent humps or ridges. As the vehicle passes over the unit 5, the operator thereof will have a full vision of the rails on the left side of the road or highway 3 and after the unit 5 has been passed, the unit 4 is encountered and as the sections and humps thereon are disposed in the opposite direction to the sections and humps of the unit 5, the vehicle will travel in the opposite direction and permit the operator to have a full view of the rails on the right side of the highway. This will be sutiicient to Warn the operator of the vehicle of the approaching of a railway crossing and thereby caution the operator of the danger.

The safety device which includes the pairs of units on opposite sides of the rails will extend for substantially the full width of the highway whereby a vehicle must travel in a zigzag course before reaching the rails and should a vehicle be traveling at an excessive rate of speed and encounter the humps of the sections comprising each of the units, the wheels will travel thereover in such a manner as to cause an upward and downward movement of the vehicle yet preventing any injury to the tires or the body of the vehicle.

If desired, signs such as are shown at 9 are placed on the highway a suitable distance from the units 5 for initially warning the operator of the vehicle that a railway crossing is about to be approached.

A. railway crossing safety device of the above mentioned character, will at all times be positive and etlicient in carrying out the purposes for which the same is designated and will prevent numerous accidents caused by vehicles traveling at an excessive rate of speed over a railway crossing.

While I have shown a preferred embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that various changes in the size, shape and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the naeaeve invention and the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is 1. In combination with a railway crossing, of means in the highway spaced from the rails to cause a vehicle to follow a zigzag course before reaching the rails, said means including diagonally arranged humps e:-:- tending transversely across the highway.

2. In combination with a railway crossing, of means in the highway spaced from the rails to cause a vehicle to follow a zigzag course before reaching the rails, said means including diagonally arranged humps extending transversely across the highway, said humps being arranged in parallel spaced relation with respect to each other to require the wheels of the vehicle to pass therebetween and permit the operator of the vehicle to have a full view of the rails.

33. In combination with a railway crossing, of a plurality of units extending transversely across the highway on each side of the rails and spaced therefrom, each of said units including a plurality of diagonally disposed sections having humps thereon to require the vehicle to travel in a zigzag course before crossing the rails.

4;. In combination with a railway crossing, of means in the highway spaced from the rails to cause a vehicle to follow a zigzag course before reaching the rails, said means comprising diagonally arranged abutting sections arranged transversely across the highway, and a hump extending longitudinally on the upper surface of each of said sections.

In testimony whereof I allix my signature.

THOMAS R. BUT CHART.

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