US2256290A

US2256290A - Sand container

Info

Publication number: US2256290A
Application number: US363667A
Authority: US
Inventors: Joseph C Mccune
Original assignee: Westinghouse Air Brake Co
Current assignee: Westinghouse Air Brake Co
Priority date: 1940-10-31
Filing date: 1940-10-31
Publication date: 1941-09-16
Anticipated expiration: 1958-09-16

Description

Sept. 16, 1941. J. c, MccuNE SAND CONTAINER Filed oct. 31,. 1940 EO, 2 i214 E9 28 INVENTOR JOSE FH C. McCUNE Y E N R O n A Patented Sept. 16, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SAND CONTAINER Joseph C. McCune, Edgewood, Pa.,

Westinghouse Air Brake Company,

assigner to The Wilmerding,

Pa., a corporation of/Pennsylvania Application October 31, 1940, Serial No. 363,667

4 Claims.

hicles have been designed as an integral part of' the vehicle or attached thereto in a manner substantially forming an integral part thereof. These containers are inspected periodically and when necessary are replenished with dry sand, the replenishing operation being usually performed from the inside of the vehicle. These containers are usually of such size as to carry sufficient san-d for a complete trip or train run. However, the amount of sand used for any given trip varies in accordance with the operating and track conditions encountered during the trip.

In modern trains which operate at much higher speeds than has been customary in the past, greater and quicker acting braking forces are required to decelerate or stop the train in the relatively short distances required to meet operating schedules and ensure the safety of the trains. In order to avoid slipping or sliding of the wheels under these trains various arrangements have been proposed, and some are in use which operate to sand the rails under the train more frequently than has been done in the past. In certain arrangements sand is even applied simultaneously to the rails at a plurality of different locations throughout the length of train in order to obtain the maximum of protection.

Heretofore, sand has usually been carried in containers or receptacles provided on or in the vehicle bodies where plenty of space is available. However, on modern high speed trains the available space either inside or outside the vehicle body for sand carrying containers is very limited and since the amount of sand consumed has been materially increased, inspection of said sand containers must be more frequent to insure that the vehicle is provided with an adequate sand supply. The arrangements of sand containers, inside the vehicle takes up considerable room and are such that the inspection and replenishing of the containers with sand enroute causes annoyance and in some cases inconvenience to the passengers.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a sand container or receptacle for a vehicle which is constructed and arranged so as to eliminate any inconvenience to passengers and at the same time dispense with the need for inspection of the sand containers by a highly trained in- Spector. According Vto the invention this object is accomplished by providing a portable sand carry# ing container or receptacle adapted to be readily associated with or disasscciated from the sanding equipment permanentlyliixed to the vehicle, so that, when it is discovered by inspection that the sand container on the vehicle is nearly empty,

it may be readily removed from the vehicle and another fully charged container substituted therefor, by even an unskilled1 workman.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following more detailed description of the invention. K

In the accompanying drawing Fig. lis an end elevational view of the sand containeror receptacle shown detachably secured in place to a mounting bracket which is iixed to a portion Vof the sand deliverysystem, which portion of the system is shown in section; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional View of the container and its mounting bracket, taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing the sand container or receptacle removed from themounting'bracke't.

As. shown in the drawing, the sanding system comprises a sand container or receptacle I which is detachably secured to a mounting bracket 2. This bracket, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing,

scribed in the copending application of Joseph C. McCune, Serial No. 297,115, led September 29, 1939.

This type of sanding system comprises a conveyor screw 5 which'is mounted in a bore 6, and is arranged to carry sand from an inlet port 'I to an outlet port (not shown), for delivery to thesurface over which a `wheel of the vehicle rolls.

According to the invention, the portable sand container or receptacle l comprises a casing 8 having at opposite ends thereof windows 9 and having a hopper bottom I0 provided with valves Il and l2 which are normally held closed -by springs I3 and Ill, respectively, for cutting of! communication from a sand storage chamber l5 dened by the walls and hopper bottom of the container. This chamber is adapted to be charged or iilled with dry sand I6 through the open upper end of the end is closed by a removable cover l1. .In the present embodiment of the invention, the cover container which open I'I is secured to the container by means of a bolt I8 and a wing nut I9 and is for the purpose of excluding moisture and foreign matter from the sand.

The mounting bracket 2 comprises a casing 4 having the opposite sides thereof sloped downwardly and inwardly to a hol-low tube-like sand conducting portion 20 which is provided at the end thereof with a flange 2|. This flange is adapted to be secured in any suitable manner, such for instance as by cap screws 22, to the sanding system in a manner to establish communication between a chamber A23 in the casing and the sand inlet port 24 'leading to .thec'o'nveying screw of the sanding system.

upwardly extending projections 2-5 a-nd 216 which are so arranged as to engage the valves II and I2, respectively, in the container I when the container is .positioned on the mounting bracket 2.

the container I is being thus positioned the closed valves II and I2 rst rest on the vupper endof the projections 25 and 25, respectively. rEhe container is then forced downwardly relative to the bracket to Vthe position in which itis shown in Fig. .2, so that the valves I I and -IZ will Ibe opened against .the opposing pressure of the biasing springs. `With the container I thus -posi- .tioned on the bracket 2, an opening 28 provided at .each vend of the container I aligns with a screw-threadedopeni-ng 2S provided -in each end of the bracket 2. A cap screw 30 'is then inserted through each opening in the container I and is screwed into the opening 29, `so as to rigidly clamp the container to the 'bracket 2. Now with the container I thus secured in place, the projections 25 and 26 maintain the valves II .and I2 open against the vopposing force ofthe springs I3 and I4, respectively, thereby main# ktaining an open communication between chambers I5 and 23 through which sand may flow by gravity from chamber I5 to chamber Y23 and thereby through the hollow tube like portion 4to the inlet port 24 Iof the sanding system.

It will be understood that when an empty'or partially empty lcontainer I is to be removed from the mounting bracket 2 in order to substitute a charged `or -full container, Kthe cap Ascrews 3B are removed and the container I, as a unit, may be removed from the bracket. As the container is being separated from the bracket, the springs I3 and 1.4 -act to close the valves `I I vand I2, respectively, so that any sand remaining in the .container is not lost or spilled.

It will here be noted that a plurality of .charged containers may be kept on hand at regular train stops or may even be carried onthe vehicle, so that when the sand in the container ,is running low the charged or full container may be substituted for the empty container. The windows .9 provide means for visually .determining the amount .of sand in a container.

To open the container for relling purposes the wing nut I9 `is .backed off the zbolt I8 and lthe cover II removed, but this can only be done while the container is free of the bracket since with the container secured to the mounting bracket, .the wing nut If8 is not accessible .andthe cover cannot be removed. This prevents unauthorized persons from tampering With the sand containers.

'While one. illustrative embodiment of the Ainvention vhas' been described in -detaiLit li-s not the intention to limit the scope to that embodif l5 The mounting bracket 2 is also provided with -control a communication from the interior of .the containerY to the passage in the bracket,

.means yon saidbracket for holding said valve `means in position to maintain said communication open, resilient means for actuating said 'valve vmeans to close said communication, a removable top cover for the sand container, said cover being entirely separate from said valve means, and Ymeans for Yclamping said cover to the container, said means being so constructed and arranged -as `to be accessible to remove said cover only when the container is free from lsaid bracket.v

2. A sand storage container for attachment to and removal from sanding systems for vehicles, comprising a sand containing chamber provided with a xed hopper bottom, a communication leading from said hopper bottom to 'the `exterior of the container, valve means carried by said bottom 4for `normally closing said communication, -said val-ve means being accessible from the exterior lof the container and being yieldable upwardly to -open said communication, 'a removable top coverv for thejsa'nd container, and means cooperating With Asaid bottom for clamping said cover to the container, said means being so constructed and arranged as to be accessible to remove said cover Vonly when the container is free from said sanding system, and said valve means being entirely yindependent of said cover and the cover clamping means.

3. In a sanding apparatus for vehicles, the

combination, with `a sanding system, of a funnel shaped bracket included in the system having a sand chamber and a 'sand conducting discharge passage leading from said chamber; a sand .container comprising a casing removably secured .to said bracket, said casing comprising a hopper bottom,` a communication leading from 'the interior of `the container to said chamber and valve means carried by said Abottom interiorly of .the container for controlling said communication; .a projection carried 'by said bracket for actuating said valve means to a position to open said communication; spring'means carried b y said lbottom for actuating said valve means to close said .communication upon removal of the container from said bracket; a removable cover Afor the sand .container having a Acentral vdepending leg adapted to extend `through the hopper bottom to the .exterior ofthe container; and a nut arranged on the eXterior'of the container and having screwthreaded engagement with said leg and cooperating with said bottom for clamping said cover to the container, vsaid Ynut rbeing accessible to remove the cover only when t-he container is free of the bracket.

4. '1n a *sanding apparatus for vehicles, the combination, with a sanding system, of a funnel shaped bracket included in the system lhaving l.a sand chamber and a central sand conducting discharge passa-ge leading vfrom said chamber, a sand container removably secured to said bracket for supplying sand to said chamber, said conthreaded engagement with said stern for clamping said cover to the container, said nut being located exteriorly of the container so as to be accessible for removal of the cover when the container is free from the bracket, and means carried .bythe bracket for actuating said valve means to open said communication from the container to said chamber upon assembly of said container upon said bracket.

JOSEPH C. MCCUNE.