US1832586A - Insulating head piece for rail joints - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 17, 1931. E. F. SCHERMERHORN 1,332,536

INSULATING HEAD PIECE FOR RAIL JOINTS Filed May 19, 1931 Z2 3 D R E I 1/ j; 3 ii a @AG Patented Nov. 17, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFicEi EDWARDS r. sonnnnnnnonn, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YonK, ASSIGNOR TO THE RAIL JOINT COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N.

Y., A ooRPoRArroN on NEW YORK INSULATING HEAD rrncn'ron RAIL Jornrns Application filed May 19,

This invention relates to insulating head pieces for insulated rail joints, and has generally in view to provide for obtaining longer life and service than has heretofore been obtained from such insulating pieces.

An insulating head piece of the character with which the present invention is concerned is of a length to extend throughout or substantially throughout the length of the rail joint and is of substantially inverted L-shape in cross section, being inclusive of vertical and lateral portions joined together by a curved connecting portion. The curved connecting portion is adapted to be interposed between the rail head fillet and the upper inner corner of the splice bar, and the vertical and lateral portions are adapted to extend between the inner face of the splice bar and the rail web, and between the top of the splice bar andthe underside of the rail head, respectively, thus to insulate thesplice bar from the rails. The vertical portion preferably extends at its lower edge across the line of the joint bolts and is slotted to accommodate said bolts thus to prevent the insulation from creeping endwise out of the 'oint. a

J In a rail joint the rail ends partake of more or less-vertical movement when traffic passes over the joint, and dueto-temperature changes and other causes the rails also partake of frequent and considerable relative longitudinal movement. Moreover, sharp corners usually exist'where the end faces of the rails join the different longitudinal faces thereof, and in many instances saw burrs are formed at saidcorners. Under such conditions, when an insulating head piece of the character mentioned and as heretofore constructed is embodied in a rail joint, the sharp or burred edges at the rail ends have a pronounced tendency, due to the ver tical movement of the rail ends, to cut into the insulation, and when this occurs, followed by longitudinal movement of the rails, the cutting action of the sharp corners of the rails is accompanied by a tearing and rupturing action upon the insulation, with the result that the latter is liable to fracture and tear apart at its point of least resistance,

1931. Serial No. 538,533.

which is usually through one of the bolt slots. lVhen a fracture orrupture occurs it may progress substantially at right angles to the insulation across the same at the rail ends, which does no particular harm, but more often the fracture or rupturedevelops as aforesaid from the point of cutting of the insulation by the sharp corners of the rail ends diagonally to an adjacent bolt slot, which is the line of least resistance, and when such a fracture or rupture occurs there is a tendency to a double fracture, which may andquite frequently does result in a section of the insulation becoming broken away and dropping out of the joint, thus affecting the essential insulating capacity of the joint. 7 I

If the head insulation is-designed in two half-length pieces to keep their adjacent ends back of and away from the sharp or burred edges at the rail ends the installation is difficult, because the two insulating pieces cannot readily be held in place wh1le the splice bars and the joint bolts are being applied and during tightening of the joint, and, moreover, it is more economical and satisfactory from various difierent view points to form the head insulation in a single piece rather than in separate sections.

Accordingly. the general object of the present invention is to provide a full length insulating head piece which is easy of application by reason of being accessible from and held at each end of the joint, which embodies a construction avoiding contact with the sharp or burred edges at the rail ends whereby cutting of the insulation with consequent early beginning of a fracture is avoided, and which also embodies a construction to directanyfracture which may eventually'develop across the insulation substantially at right angles thereto at the rail ends, whereby the fracture results in the least harm and whereby tendency of other fractures to develop is reduced to a minimum, all to the end of providing for longevity of the insulation as aforesaid.

With the foregoing and otherobjects in view, which will become more fully apparent as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel features of construction and arrangement as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and defined 1n the appended claims.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation of a rail-joint showing the near splice bar removed and illustrating an insulating head piece constructed according to one practical form of the invention, embodied in the joint.

Figure 2 is a transverse section through the joint.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the in sulating head piece illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of an insulating head piece constructed in accordance with another practical embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of an insulating head piece constructed in accordance with a further practical embodiment of the invention.

In the rail joint illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, R, R designate the rails, 13 the splice bar, C the joint bolts, D an insulating end post interposed between the rail ends, and E one form of the present insulating head piece interposed between the splice bar and the rails.

According to each of the embodiments of the invention illustrated in the drawings, the insulating head piece E is of a length corresponding to the length of the rail joint and is of substantially inverted L-shape in cross section, being inclusive of vertically and laterally extending portions 10 and 11, respectively, joined together by a rounded connecting portion 12.

The vertical portion 10 of the insulating head piece is provided along its lower edge withslots 13, and when the insulation is embodied in a rail joint. as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, the curved connecting portion 12 is disposed between. the rail head fillet 14 and the upper inner corner 15 of the splice bar, the lateral portion 11 extends outwardly between the top of the splice bar and the under side of the rail head, and the vertical portion 10 is disposed between the inner face of the upper part of the splice bar and the adjacent face of the rail web, the said vertical portion 10 extending downward across the line of the joint bolts and the latter being received in the slots 13.

Referring particularly to the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3, it will be observed that in accordance with the invention the lateral portion 11 of the insulating head piece E has formed therein a recess 16 which opens through the outer edge of said lateral portion and extends inwardly to a point located approximately at the beginning of the rounded portion 12. It

tion.

will also be observed that said recess is located medially of the insulation and is of a width such that the inner ends 17 of the portion 11 formed by the recess 16 are disposed back of and away from the ends of the rails. ll iloreover, it will be observed that preferably a narrow slot or saw kerf l8 extends from the inner side of the recess 16 at the center thereof transversely across the rounded connecting portion 12, and continues downwardly across and at right angles to the vertical portion 10 to a terminal point near the lower edge of said vertical por- Thus, it is apparent that while the insulation embodies a one-piece construction facilitating placing of the same in, a rail joint, the recess 16 provides means whereby contact of the sharp or burred edges at the ends of the under faces of the rail heads with the lateral portion 11 of the insulation is avoided.

Consequently, despite vertical movement of the rail ends, no cutting into the insulation by said sharp or burred edges can take place, and, therefore, no fracture or ruptures of the insulation can be initiated by cutting action of said sharp or burred corners as has heretofore been common. lrloreover, by eliminating the possibility of the said sharp or burred corners of the rails cutting into or becoming embedded in the insulation all ordinary longitudinal movements of the rails may occur without tendency to rip or tear the insulation, and in any event, even through the longitudinal movements of the rails may e be so extreme as to pull the respective end portions of the insulation apart, the line of least resistance formed by the slot or saw kerf 18 provides for confining the resultant fracture between the lower end of said slot or kerf and an adjacent edge of the insulation, so that the insulation will separate at its center, which does no particular harm.

Ordinarily the gap between 'rail ends is approximately three-eighths of an inch in width, and under extreme conditions this gap may increase in width to as much as liveeighths of an inch more or less. Consequently, it is preferred that the recess 16 be approximately three-fourths of an inch in width so as to avoid contact of the sharp edges at the rail ends with the portion 11 of the insulation under all circumstances. Obviously, however, the width and depth of the recess 16 may be varied as desired to best suit different installation conditions.

hen the portion 11 of-the insulation is re cessed as at 16 in the manner described, thereby avoiding cutting of this portion of the insulation by the sharp corners at the ends of the rails, with consequent avoidance of early initiation of fractures or ruptures, it may be entirely unnecessary under some conditions to provide the slot or saw kerf 18, especially if the rails partake of only a normal amount of endwise movement. 7 Therefore, instead of providing the kerf 18 as in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3, the lateral portion 11 of the insulation may simply be provided with a recess 1h as illustrated in Fig. i of the drawings, which recess may be of any desired width and may extend from the edge of said portion 11 as far across the insulation as desired.

As illustrated in Fig. 5 of the drawings, the recess 16 is relatively narrow and extends from the edge of the lateral portion 11 of the insulation entirely across said lateral portion and also across the curved connecting portion 12 and downwardly across the upper part of the vertical portion 10, leaving aline of least resistance to fracture or rupture be tween the lower end of said recess and the lower edge of the portion 10. Consequently,

even though the sharp corners of the rails 111 ay cut into the lateral portion, any tendency of the insulation to fracture due to longitudinal movement of the rails will be localized at the center of the insulation along said line of least resistance.

Obviously the present insulating head piece is equally adapted for use with either stand ard or head free rail joints.

Without further description it is thought that the features and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and it will of course be understood that changes in the form, proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims.

I claim 1. An insulating head piece for insulated rail joints comprising a sheet of insulation inclusive of a vertical portion adapted to lie between the joint bar and the rail web and a la teral portion adapted to lie between the top of the joint bar and the under side of the rail head, said insulation having a medial recess extending inward from the outer edge of the lateral portion thereof.

2. An insulating head piece for insulated rail joints comprising a sheet of insulation inclusive of a vertical portion adapted to lie between the joint bar and the rail web and a lateral portion adapted to lie between the top of the joint bar and the under side of the rail head, said insulation having a medial recess extending inward from the outer edge of the lateral portion thereof, said recess being of greater width than the gap between the rail ends of the rail joint in which the insulation is to be embodied.

3. An insulating head piece for insulated rail joints comprising a sheet of insulation inclusive of a vertical portion adapted to lie between theoint bar and the rail weband a lateral portion adapted to lie between the top of the joint bar and the under side of the rail head, said insulation having a medial recess extending inward from the outer edge of the lateral portion entirely across said portion and downwardly across said vertical portion to a point spaced above the lower edge of the latter. a I

4. An insulating head-piece for insulated rail joints comprising a sheet of insulation inclusive of a vertical portion adapted to lie between the joint bar and the rail web and a lateral portion adapted to lie between thetop of the joint bar and the under side of the-rail head, said insulation having a medial recess of appreciable width extending inward from the outer edge of the lateral portion thereof and further having a relatively narrow slot extending from the inner edge of said recess at the center thereof downwardly across said vertical portion to a point spaced above the lower edge of the latter.

5. An insulating head piece for insulated rail joints comprising a sheet of insulation of a length approximating the length of the rail joint and inclusive of a vertical portion adapted to lie between the joint bar and the rail web, a lateral portion adapted to lie between the top of the joint bar and the under side of the rail head, and a curved portion connecting said vertical and lateral portions and adapted to lie between the rail head fillet and the upper inner corner of the joint bar, said lateral portion having a medial recess.

6. An insulating head piece for insulated rail oints comprising a sheet of insulation of a length approximating the length of the rail joint and inclusive of a vertical portion adapted to lie between the joint bar and the rail web, a lateral portion adapted to lie between the top of the joint bar and the under side of the rail head, and a curved portion connecting said vertical and lateral portions and adapted to lie between the rail head fillet and the upper inner corner of the joint bar, said lateral portion having a medial recess extending substantially entirely thereacross.

7. An insulating head piece for insulated rail joints comprising a sheet of insulation inclusive of a vertical portion adapted to lie between the joint bar and the rail web, a lateral portion adapted to lie between the top of the joint bar and the under side of the rail head, and a curved portion connecting said vertical and lateral portions and adapted to lie between the rail head fillet and the upper inner corner of the joint bar, said lateral portion having amedial recess extending substantially entirely thereacross and of a width greater than the width of the gap between therail end of the rail joint in which the insulation is to be embodied.

8. An insulating head piece for insulated rail joints comprising a sheet of insulation inclusive of a vertical portion adapted to lie between the joint bar and the rail web, a lateral portion adapted to lie between the top ofthe joint bar and the under side of the rail head, and a curved portion connecting said vertical and lateral portions and adapted to lie' between the, rail head fillet andthe upper innercorner of the joint bar, said lateral portion having a medial recess of appreciable width extending inwardly from the outer edge of said portion approximately to said curved connecting portion, said connecting portion having a slot formed medially there- :icross opening into said recess and extending downwardly across said vertical portion to, a point spaced above the lower edge of said vertical portion.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature.

EDWARDS F. SOHERMERHORN.

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