US1553287A - Draft gear - Google Patents

Description

Sept. s, 1925.

w. H. COTTON DRAFT GEAR Filed March 8. 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet l Sept. 8, 1925.

w. H. COTTON DRAFT GEAR Filed March 8, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 i Patented Sept. 8, 1925.

UNITED 'STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER n. COTTON, or c n-IoAoo, ILLINOIS, AssIeNon To IINLON DRAFT enen co., A CORPORATION or ILLINOIS,

DRAFT enna.k

-Applcaton filed. March 8, 1924'. Serial No, 697,925.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, VVALTER H. COTTON, 'a citizen of the United States, and resident of Chicago, county of Cook, and State of illinois, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Draft Gears, of which the following is a. specification and which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

The invention relates to draft gears of the friction type for railway cars, being especially adapted for freight service, its principal object being to secureal high capacity for absorbing and dissipating energy.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is disclosed in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a central plan section of the gear in release position with parts of the car structure shown in plan, and partly broken away;

Fig. 2 is a detail side elevation partly in section viewed from the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is aview similar to Fig. 1, the gear being under compression in bluff;

Fig. 4E is a detail section on the broken line 4 4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the gear detached from the car, and

Figs. 6 and 7 are details in perspective of wedging and friction elements.

For the purpose of showing the manner of mounting the gear on a car, there is shown a pair of draft sills at 10 with draft lugs 11, 11, and bufmg lugs 12, 12, attached thereto. The butt of a coupler is shown at 13 and its extension, here shown as a. loop-form of yoke, at 14.

The gear comprises a pair of followers 15, 16, which are enclosed within the loop 14 and cooperate respectively with the draft and buliing lugs. Each of these followers is provided with a central wedging extension 17, 18, preferably though not necessarily, formed integrally with the follower. Each follower is also provided with top and bottom plate extensions which interfit as Inortise and tenon joints. As shown at 19, 20, Fig. 5, preferably the spaced elements 19 are formed at the top of one of the followers and at the bottom of the other, and the central or entering elements 20 are 'consequently reversely arranged. n

Cooperating with each of the wedges 17, 18, is a pair of floating wedge velements 21, 22, 23, 24. The'elements 21, 2 3, are each provided with ay bifurcated lateral extension 25, 26, which'frictionally engage each other on the transverse medial line' of the gear'. The elements 22, 211, are mere blocks, each of which seats against one of the lateral extensions 25, 26. Each of the wedge elements 21, 23, is further provided with a lug 27 (F ig. 2) each of which extends into a recess 28 formed in the elements 22, 24, for the pur pose of interlockingtherewith and positively insu-ring Vthe movement together of the two wedging elements located upon the same side of the gear.

The relative approach of the followers 15, 16, causes the spreading of the floating wedge elements as indicated in Fig. 3, land this movement is resisted by a pair of springs 29, 30, mounted upon the end portions of a transversely disposed stt-raining rod 31, these springs reacting between seats, as 32, threaded upon the lrod and seats, as 33, sleeved upon the rod and bearing against the floating wedge elements. The transverse faces of the oat-ing wedge elements are grooved to provide clearance for the rod 31, andthe extensions 25, 26, are bifurcated for the same reason.

Friction is developed not only between the several faces, but especially between the eX- tensions or plates 25, 26, which slide'upon each other as the gear is compressed and released. As both of the plates 25, 26, have movement their relative travel is double that of the movable spring seats, andas the capacity for absorbing and dissipating energy is in proportion both to the pressure upon and extent of movement of the engaging ele ments, the capacity of the gear consequently is very high.

Inasrnuch as these plates move in line with the springs the friction developed between them supplements the spring resistance and makes it possible to use lighter springs than have ordinarily been employed in gears of this general type. Y

The wedge elements 21 to 211 ride upon the instanding webs 19, 20, of the followers. The gear reaches the limit of its compression when the flattened ends of the wedges 17, 18, come into contact with the plates 25, 26, as shown in Fig. 3.

Although the form of construction'shown and described is, so far as now advised, mostolesirable, the scope of the invention is such as to include various modifications of it. For example, while the friction plates 25, 25, are shown as being cast or formed integrally with one of the wedge elements, they will function the same if merely interlocked therewith.

I claim as my invention:

l. In a draft gear, in combination, a pair of springs disposed normal to the axis of the gear, a pair of coacting relatively movable friction plates parallel with the springs and lsupplementing their resistance and means for simultaneously moving the plates in o-pposite directions and compressing the springs.

2. In a draft gear, in combination, a pair of followers, a spreading wedge associated with each follower, a pair of wedge elements cooperating with each of the spreading wedges, a pair of cooperating friction plates one thereof being associated and movable with one of the wedge elements of each pair, and spring means resisting the movements of the named parts.

3. In a draft gear, in combination, a pair of coacting friction plates disposed transversely to the axis of the gear, a wedging element associated and movable with each plate, a wedging element opposed to each of the last named wedging elements and sli'dably seated upon the plate associated therewith, a pair of followers each having a spreading wedge entered between the pair of wedging elements at the adjacent side of the plates, and spring means resisting the movement of such parts.

4t. In a draft gear, in combination, a` pair of coacting friction plates disposed transversely to the aXis of the gear, a wedging element associated and movable with each plate, a wedging element opposed to each of the last named wedging elements and slidably seated upon the plate associated therewith and being inter-locked wit-h the wedge element associated with the other plate, a pair of followers each having a spreading wedge entered between the pair of wedging elements at the adjacent side of the plates, and spring means resisting the movement of such parts.

In a draft gear, in combination,'two pairs of opposed wedging elements, a pair of coacting friction plates interposed between the two pairs, each plate being fixed to one of the elements and slidingly engaging the other element of the same pair, a pair of followers each having a spreading wedge entered between the wedging eled ments of one of the pairs and spring means opposing the spreading action thereon.

6. In a draft gear, in combination, a tension rod disposed transversely to the airis of the gear and provided with a pair of sleeves, spring means urging the sleeves toward each other, two pairs of opposed wedging elements interposed between the sleeves, a pair of coacting friction plates interposed between the two pairs of wedging elements, one of such, plates being in fixed relation with one of such elements and in sliding engagement with the other element of the same pair, and a pair of followers each having a spreading wedge entered between the members of the adjacent pair of opposed wedging elements.

WALTER H. COTTON.

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