US1599234A - Step-illuminating light - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 7 1926. 1,599,234 J. R. HIGHTOWER El' AL STEP ILLUMINATING LIGHT Filed July 3, 1925 2 Sheets-'Sheet 1 l f y Inval/item5 JQHNQJWGHUMERX Mmmm HQQPER Patented Sept. 7, Y 1926.

JQHN R. nrerrfrownn LND WILLIAM Al'jirooienn, or iNoXviLLE, TENNESSEE.

' Application file d` July 3, 1.925.- Serial-Noj. 41,290.

d Thisinvention-relates toilluminationand section oir'thefpilot Vof such .a locomotive has special `reference'to locomotive illuminaillg.' means particularly designed lto attord villumination to. the steps and fo'otboards olif locomotives, tendersl and thelike..

It is a Well knownfact` that train men, yard men and4 otherV railway employees con- Vstantly get on and offifflocomotives `and tenders While the latter areinmotion. rllhis is lespecially trueof yard men who are inthe habit of jumping- .yard engines inutheir Work aroundthe yard.v Such engines and their tenders .areusuaflly provided With'front andV rear running boards or steps lWhich eX-` tendf transversely aeross Vbetweenlthe rails vof the. track and the men jump .the vengine by standing betweenthe rails in yfront of the approaching engine,y liftingone tootI and placing on the step as the engine rolls toward them. Obviously a mis-step, as frequently happens at night WhenI the step cannot be clearly'seen, frequently results in serious injury to the employee and sometimes in death.' Y l Heretofore, no attempt has been made to overcome this lack of illumination at this critical place except by lantern or the likein the employees possession and this is ineffec-` tive because thelocation of the step can be only assured when the engine `has approached too close to the employee tojenable him to avoid the accident. i

The Vprincipal and most important objects of the present invention is to provide a novel arrangement of illumination forv such purposes wherein thesteps will be properly rendered visible at all times and wherein the illuminating means Will be positioned to be protected trom accident. and from throW- ing a glare in the employees eyes and thus blinding him and making accident more liable.

lVith the above and other objects in View aswill be hereinafter apparent, the invention consists in general of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter' .fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and specifically claimed.

In the accompanying drawings like characters of reference indicate like parts in the several views, and:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of an ordinary road locomotive equipped With 'this'invention. i Figure 2 is an enlarged detail-partly in showing? the lighting arrangement;

Figure. 3v is. aV similar View. showing` the cab-,stepillumination.

engine equipped With this invention.

, v y `6l) Figure 4 is a .front .elevation of a yard Figure 5. is ka rear view of. aV yard tender similarly equipped;

.Figure 6 is 1 an enlarged detailv section through an endsill or bumper. showing-'one arrangement ofthe lamp. t y

Figure 7. isasimilar vieW show-ing a modiiication.

VFigure 8 isa similarnviewshowing a second modification.

drajvings several' modilications of.4 the invention'aredisclosjed butl in each'caseit will.

be seen that. the invention. improves not combinationot' suchalamp and a portionlot the engine,7tlie lampbeing so arranged Athat i y Inthe present illustration as shown in the i.

only'a` mere illuminatinglamp butr also the e is is supported and protected against injury.`

This is a very important feature of such an invention by reason of the fact that it is necessary, in order toproperly illuminate the foot-boards or running-boards, the lamps being placed loW down on the engine in positions Where they would be constantlyv liable to be struck by an employee in getting on or oil". the engine unless provision Was made to'properly protect the lamp and protectit against vsuch injury. Furthermore, unless such provision was made not only would the lamp be liable to injury but the employee hitting` the lamp Would be apt toinjure himself. This is particularly true When such a lamp is used onV the end sill or bumper of a yard engine or tender and it is to be 'understood 1n this speciication that Where'reference is made toan end sill for rolling stock, this expression is intended to includethe bumper beam of a locomotive and the end sill of a tender.

Bearing these facts in mind it Will be seen from the illustrations rin. the accompanying drawings that in Figure 1 there is disclosed a locomotive l0 of the ordinary road type and that this locomotivefis pro-V vided With a pilot 11 having steps 12. Also the locomotive is provided with a rear step land a rear end sill 14 as Well as a bumper or front end sill 15. ASimilarly in Figures 4 and 5 there is disclosed a yard locomotive 16 having a bumper Aor frontend sill` 17 and a tender 18 having an end sill 19. Both Y I the locomotive and tender are provided with steps. or running-boardsfQO supported by brackets 2l from the end sills. The lamp may be either supported beneath the end sills as shown in Figures 4 and 5 or supported against-'the end sills as shown in Figure l. llhen supported beneath the end sills it is preferred that a bracketl 2l be boltedV beneath the sill and that an adjustable armf22 held by an adjustable bolt and' nut 23 be mounted pivotally on the bracket and carry a hood Q4 wherein is the lamp 25, suitable wiring connections of any desired type leading to said lamp.

In cases where the lamp is supported against the bnrnpcr'the bracket is preferablyy made' ot L-shape as shown at 26 in Figures 6 and 7 and carries the hood 27 which lies against the face of the bumper o-n one side so that it is firmlyv supported thereby, a pocket 2S being provided in some instances as shown in Figure 7 ln such a hood there is supported the usual lamp 29. It will be observed thatv these lamps are all in such a position that the hood acts as a reflector to direct the light rays downwardly onto'the steps and to prevent any ot the light rays striking the eye of the employee as bestands in front of or at therside of the engine. Thus thersteps are thoroughly illuminated while at the same time the employee is not blinded by the light and the accidents that are so liable to happen through the em- It is obviousthat minor changes may be made in the form and construction of theY invention without departing from the material spirit thereof. It is not, therefore, desired to confine the invention tothe exact form herein shown and described, but itis desired to include all such as properly come within the scope claimed. f

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is:

In combination with aI rolling stock bumper and a step supported r below said bumper, said bumper having Va pocket inthe vertical tace of the bumper adjacent the step and inclined downwardly Atoward the step; of a lamp hood vfitted in said pocket .above the lower edge of the bumper, said hood constituting ay retlector from the lamp to direct rays fromV the lamp onto said step.

tures.

.ln testimony whereof we aiiCiX our signa-V

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