US1772569A - Car-ventilating system - Google Patents

Description

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CAR-VEKT ILATING SYSTEM Application filed September 1c, 1926. Serial no. 135,730.

Our invention relates to improvements in ventilating systems'for cars, and more especially to a type adapted to supply fresh air at -a temperature which will maintain the 5 temperature in a car always substantially con-'- stant.

To this end, our invention embodies a system comprls ng an air intake, an air conveymg passage, together with an air circulating means, and provided with a coil interposed betweenthe air circulating means and the air passage, which coil is adapted to serve either as a heating coil, as, for instance, a radiator connected to a steam supply or, as a cooling '15 .coil, such as, for example, an expansion coil of a refrigerating system. We have provided suitable connections for connecting the ends of the coil with either a source of steam, suchas a regular steam line from a locomo- .tive boiler, or for connecting the ends of the coil to-a suitable refrigerating plant of a type to be carried by a railroad car and to be driven by any suitable means as, for instance, through a mechanical connection way influencing the other system or the pipe connections therefor, the supply pipe for the refrigerating system being provided adj acentv the cut-off valve with the expansion valve which, when taken together with the coil,

constitutethe necessary expansion coils for a refrigerating system of the type employed.

A single'automatic control means. has been ,provided which'is adapted to be selectively connected to either one of the two systems, 0 j the control means comprising a thermostat which, when connected with the steam supply,

controls a throttle positioned within the steam supply pipe in a manner to pass or obstruct the passage of steam, permitting such an amount to reach the coil as will cause the temperature within the car to be maintaine d within a predetermined ran e of temperature, .In the event that'the t ermostat ,is connected to the refrigerating system, va- :riations .in the temperature within the car 'a' result to be such, that the temperature in within a predetermined range will, through suitable electrical connections, influence a magnetically operated belt-tighte'ner, which belt-tightener being interposed between the driving axle and the driven wheel of the refrigerating plant Willcause the driving influence'of the car axle to be automatically clutched in and out as a source of ower, and thereby cause the refrigerating p ant to operate and in turn to cool the coils more or less according to the temperature already existing in the car, the operation always being such as to counteract any variations, in temperature due to outside atmospheric conditions. a

One of the objects of our invention is to provide a circulatingv system-for railroadvcars which will .supply fresh air to the interior of a car, the temperature of which has been previously established so as to maintain the temperature oflthe car substantially constant for all seasons of the year.

Another object of our invention istoprovide a ventilating system for railroad cars in WhlChLiS provided a coilinterposed inthe 75 circuit of air, which coil isadapted for use either as a heatin coil or a coolin coil, together with suita le connections or selectivelyeonnecting the coil with a steam supply or a refrigerating system.

Another object of our invention is to provide a ventilatinig system forrailroad cars embodyingthe a vantages ofthe above stat-- ed ob ects together -Wlth a single control means operable upon temperature conditions, and which is of a ty e suitable to control a. steam throttle, as -w en connected to oper ate in conjunction with the heating system, or to .control .a. magnetic l )e1t,-t1glitening clutch in a manner to influence the capacity of a refrigerating system, and in both of these instances,.influencin each of theeonp trol' means an amount which will cause the operation of each of the separate systems as the car ismaintained within-a redetermined rangerre ardless pf-whichof ,esesystemsis connec gforo ration.

The -en s l bi ct area p e y n -a th amusem n q d the accompanying sheet of drawings, in

which- 1 is a side elevation of a railroad car equi ped with our impoved ventilating stem, t e showing being partly in cross-sectron and partly diagrammatic, the coils being shown in perspective;

I Figure 2 is a plan view, partly in crosssection of the air passage disclosin the ventilating openings and t e relations ip ofthe coil to the entrance of the air passage; and

Figures 3 and 4 are enlarged views in pertlve of two of the ventilating openings, sclosing the air deflectors which are of unequal height, the twoshowings in these fig-' ures re resenting the openings at the opposite en 5 of the air passage, the highest air deflector being positioned at the outlet end of the air passage' The varlous novel features of the invention will be a parent from the following description an drawings, and will be partlcularly pointed out in the appended claim.

Referring to the figuresof the drawings, it will be noted that our ventilating system is adapted to be applied to a railroad car 10, provided with an air intake through its top and at one end, such as shown at 11. Positloned in the top of the car on the inside is an elongated housing- 12 having flared ends 13, one of which is adjacent the air intake, the opposite end being rovided with shutters 14m form a suitab e adjustable outlet.- Inter sed between the air intake and the mout of the-air passage is the air circulator 15, preferably of the fan type, which is electrically operated from any'suitable source of current such as, for instance, the li hting System storage battery already provi ed on railroad cars, the circulating action bein supplemented by a similar fan 16 positione in the outlet end of the passage, which fanis of the pulling type.

Between the mouth of the air passage and the circulating means, coils 17 are laced so as'to receive a current of air from t e intake and to present a lar surface thereto in a manner to influence t e temperature thereof. One end of the coil is connected to a pi 18 which is in turn connected to a suppy of steam, such as the main steam line from a looomotive the opposite end of the coil being. connected to a similar pipe which serves as a return to the steam system, this last-named pipe bein omitted in the drawings. Positioned in t e pipe 18 adjacent the connection to the end of the coil is a cut-off valve 19 and further removed therefrom, is a throttle 20 which is connected with a thermostatic control through the electrical connection 21 so as to be influenced by -the thermostat 22. The'coil is also connected to the refri rant intake pipe 23, provided with 'a shut-o valve "24' andan expansion valve 25, the pipe exas tending. down the side of the'car and being attached at its other end with a mechanically driven refrigerantv compressor, designated and the intake for the compressor. The com-.

pressor with the'cooling coils 28 andthe expansion valve constitute the elements of a refrigerating plant of an ordinary type, the cooling coils serving to reduce the temperature of the compressed medium heated under the influence of compression. The compressor is driven by a belt, such as shown at 29, from the car axle,the belt being of a size which 'will ordinaril permit slipping between the driving an driven elements, sufficient tautness being efi'ected by the belttightener 30 magnetically controlled by suitable mechanism, represented at 31, and influenced through suitable connections, such as'shown at 32, from the thermostat 22, above referred to, the switch 33 being provided in order that the thermostat may selectively control the heating throttle .20 or the magnetic belt-tigthener 31.

In order to prevent any possibility of steam in one case from entering therefrigerating I system, or refrigerant in the other case from entering the heating system, a second cut-off valve is provided in each system, designated 34 and 35 respectively.

In the air passage, positioned'in the upper portion of the car, are placed ventilating openings through the ,bottom wall thereof in a manner to cause this uniform distribution of the circulated air throughout the entire length of the car, eachopening being provided with a screen 36 and an upstandlng air deflector 37 adapted to intercept the current of air and direct same downwardly through the opening. The air openings are provided with deflectors of different sizes, the one nearest the intake being smallest, the others successively (increasing in heightso as to provide the more uniform distribution of air, this arrangement permitting anample supply at the end remote from the intake.

In operation, the circulating fan's 15 and 16 are started causing a current of an to be drawn in through the intake 11, and forced pver the coil 17- and through the air passage 12, a portion thereof being deflected through each of the air 0 nings and into the respective portions of t e car throu hout its len h. Depending upon the season 0 the year, eit er the steam system or refrigerating system is connected to the coil in a manner to either,

raise the temperature or to lower the temperature to thatdesired to be maintained in the car or it may be that the outside temperature is the same as that'desired in which event no heating or cooling would be' eflected. the event the steam system is to beconnected, valves 24 and 35 are. shut ofiand the valves 19 and 34; are opened ina manner to permit the supply of steam from the main stem line of the train to enter the coil through pi 19, in which instance the coil acts as a ra 'ator to elevate the temperature of the air as drawn in from the outside. In this case, the switch 33 is connected in the manner shown in Figure 1 so that thethermostat 22 influences,

through the electric connection 21, the throtth 20, thereby regulating the passage of time when the outside atmospheric temperature is above that desired to be maintained in the car, valves 19 and'34 are shut off and .valves 24 and are opened. The belt-tightener 30, which is capable of being set to er it be in comunction with the heating idle, is positioned in a manner to tighten the belt 29, thereby causing the rotation of the car axle to set the refrigerating plant in operation, which acts to supply through the pipe 23 condensed refrigerant which has been cooled in its condensed state, to the expansion valve 25 which valve permits the re- .frigerant to expand in the coil 17 with a great absorption of heat and to return to the compressor through pipe 27. In this case, the thermostat 22 is also employed, the switch 3.3 being moved to the opposite terminal in a manner to cause magnetic clutch 31 to be influenced electrically according to the temperature differences found in the railroad car. Here also the electrical influence on the belt-tightener, for every degree of temperature change-as registered at the thermostat, is such that the drive of the refrigerant comfpressor is influenced to cause the compressor to pump agreater or less amount of refrigerant which amount is exactly sufficient to cause the coils to cool the incoming air to an extent to counteract the difference in temperature found in the'car. In the event the outside temperature is exactly that which is desirable for the inside temperature, the incoming air will be forced into the car without treatment for temperature, by virtue of the fact that the thermostat controlwill so influence the system to which it is connected as to prevent any action thereof, within that particular range found in the car.

ters 14 which may be closed to a variable ex i tent at which time the air is forced into theintake by the circulator 15 and permitted-to press directly through t e air greater or less amount, so as to amount passing into the car.

We claim: A car ventilating system comprising in uence the combination, meansfor circulating a current of fresh air', a coil located in the path of the circulated air for controlling the tempera-- ture thereof, a source of steam and means having a shut-off valve for connecting said source of steam to said coil, a refrigerating.

plant, and means having a shut-off valve' for connecting said refrigerating plant to said poil, electrically responsive means for controlling the supplg of steam and electrically responsive means r controlling the capacity of said refrigerating plant and a single thermostat adapted to control either of said electrically responsivemeans and means for selectively connectin said thermostat to one or the other of sai electrically responsive means. I

Signed at Hammond, Indiana, this 13th day of September, 1926;

EDGAR M. WILCOX. MCCORMACK O. McPHERSON.

Durin the operation of this system, wheth- I J coolin systems, an absolutely uniform dis tributlon of air throughout the length of the i car is assured by the type of air deflectors employed, namelyby providing air deflectors the fans may beregulated as a whole by shut- I

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