US222647A - Improvement in elevated railways and cars therefor - Google Patents

Description

. E. ANDREWS. Elevated Railway and Car therefor. No.. 222,647. Patented Dec. 16,- I879.

- EDWARD ANDREWS, OF POTTSVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- HALF OF HIS RIGHT TO SAMUEL E. GRISCOM, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN E LEVATED RAILWAYS AND CAR$ THEREFOR.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 222.64%, dated December 16, 1879; application filed September 20, 1879.

. ence being had to the accompanying drawings,

in which- Figure l is a transverse section of my improved elevated railroad and car; Fig. 2, a diagram showing a car in the act of turning a curve, the truck being in dotted lines, so as to expose the running-gear; Fig. 3, a perspective view of one corner of the truck; and Figs. 4c and 5, enlarged views of a griping device on the car.

A A are the opposite rails of the track, which are deeply grooved, or are, more properly speaking, made in the form of H-bars, one of the legs of the H on the outside of the rail being made somewhat higher than the other in order to prevent the lateral displacement of the cars.

The rails are in the present instance supported at suitable intervals by the forked up. per ends of the posts 13, of suitable length, said posts being firmly planted in the ground; but it should be understood that the structure for supporting the rails forms no particular part of myinvention, and can be varied as circumstances may suggest.

D is the car-body, and E the truck, the two parts being made separable from each other in the following manner: To the top of the truck, near each edge of the same, are secured ribs to a, and to the latter are adapted projections b 1), formed on the lower part of the carbody, the ribs a thus preventing lateral or vertical movement of the body independently of the truck, but permitting the ready removal of said body when the truck is to be used as a platform-ear, or when a freight-car body is to be substituted for the passengencar or, if it is desirable, the ribs a may serve as rails, onto which an ordinary railway-car may be run.

It will be understood that suitable means are employed for preventing the longitudinal discar-body, and the bars on the other side of the car being hun g to links 9, pivoted to the body. (See Fig. 2.) By this means perfect freedom of movement of the shoes is insured, and the car can be drawn around curves of any desired radius.

In the present instance I have shown 011 each side of the car two bars, 6, each carrying two shoes, d; but this arrangement may be varied as the length of the car or character of the track may suggest.

Various plans of driving the cars may be adopted. For instance, a stationary rope, rail, or rack arranged centrally between the rails A, and adapted to be clutched by suitable driving machinery on the car, might be used; but the plan which I prefer is that known as the endless-cable towing system, in which a wire rope driven by suitable mechanism at opposite ends of the line, or at one end of the line, is combined with simple griping devices on the car, the car being griped to the rope when it is desired to move, and released therefrom when it becomes necessary to stop.

In the drawings, 00 represents the towingrope, the clamp consisting of a hooked plate, t, to which the rope is adapted, and to which it is confined by a sliding block, m, operated by an eccentric, n, or by a screw or similar device. Only one car or any desired number of cars of the train may be provided with clutching devices.

The clamping device being in the center of the truck, it becomes necessary to arrange the horizontal rollers s, which guide the rope w in turning a curve, away from the center of the track, so that in passing the rollers the clamping device will not strike the latter, but will lift the rope out of the groove before reaching a roller, and will deposit it in said groove after passing the roller, as shown in Fig. 2.

The rails AA should always contain such a supply of lubricating material that the shoes will slide in the same with as little friction as possible, the shoes themselves being preferab] y made of anti-frietionmetal, and, if desired, being made in the form of reservoirs of lubrieating material, so as to provide for the automatic distribution of the lubricant the car moves along the track.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination of the grooved tracks A with a car having shoes d hung to pivoted bars 6, as set forth.

2. The combination of the grooved tracks A with a car having shoes (I hung to bars 0, earried by links 9 011 the car, as set forth.

' 3. The combination of the truck E, having pivoted shoes (I and ribs a, with the ear-body D, having projections 1), adapted to the ribs (0, as set forth.

4. The truck E, having shoes (I and ribs a, the former being adapted to the grooved rails A, and the ribs or adapted to serve as rails for the Wheels of an ordinary car, as specified.

5. The combination of tlie car having a central clutching device, the rope w, and the guidepulleys s at the curve, said guide-pulleys bein g arranged away from the center of the track, so as not to interfere with the passage of the clutch, as set forth.

- In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

EDWVARD ANDREWS.

Witnesses ALEXANDER PATTERSON, HARRY SMITH.

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