US2338212A - Locomotive - Google Patents

Description

C. K. STEINS Jan. 4, 1944.

LOCOMOTIE Siez'izs,

nllHU UHU rlllld um www SN Filed March 5 1 942 Patented Jan. 4, I1944 LOCOMOTIVE Carleton K. Steins, Marion, Pa., assigner to The Pennsylvania Railroad Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application Marsh s, 1942, serai No. 433,454

(o1. ros-11s) 4 Claims.

I'his invention relates to locomotives, and has reference more particularly to steam locomotives driven either by reciprocatory or rotary (turbine) engine units.

My invention has for one of its aims to increase the tractional or pulling power of steam locomo-I tives bymore vfully making use of the total weight of the engine and the fuel and/or water load. This objective I attain in practice as hereinafter more fully disclosed, by providing for carriage of the boiler and the fuel (or water) supply at opposite ends of a single chassis' or body, and by supporting such chassis or body on a pair of power trucks disposed respectively'beneath the boiler and the fuel supply so that the respective weight loads are communicated in approximately equal proportions to the drivers of such units.

Another object of my invention is to enable a locomotive structure organized as above. notwithstanding its increased length over that of ordinary locomotives, to readily round track curves at high speeds without restriction of the vision ahead of the engine crew. This advantage is in turn realized in practice likewise as hereinafter more fully pointed out, through swivelling of the power units relative to the body in such a maninstead if this should be found advantageous or desirable in practice.- The chassis or body la of the main section I iscontinuous, and the front thereof in advance of a compartment Il provided for the locomotive crew isl tapered in planas shown in Fig. 2 and has its top depressed andinclined at a gentle downward slope as at E. As shown, the crew compartrnentis provided with windowsA 4a which overlook the depressed forward end of the main body. The body 2a of the trailer unit 2 is shaped generally like the forward portion of the main body la, and has a front end portion 6 of a height equal tof-that of the contiguous rear end of said main body, the intervening gap allowed for articulation between the two sections being closed by a bellows insert 1. As a consequence of the. described construction and proportioning, the locomotive as a whole takes on an attractive syxnimetrically-balanced.k

streamflined appearance when viewedgfrom the side as in Fig. 1.

ner; that the points of load concentration are kept on the track center, and that the ends and the mid-portion of the body respectively extend with minimum projection beyond the center line of the track. l

Another. object is to facilitate ash discharge from the boiler and also to enable use of an ash pan of maximum capacity, which desiderata are attained through my invention by so spacing the power units at opposite endsof the locomotive body as to provide a liberal interval between them, and bv arranging the boiler so that its fire bex end is directly over suchinterval. i

Owe. objects and attendant advantages will appear from the following detailed description of the attached drawing, ywherein v Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation showing. more or less diagrammatically, a steam locomotive con veniently embodying my invention. r Fig. 2 shows the top plan view of the locomotive; and v l Fig. 3 is likewise a plan view showingl the positions assumed by thecomponent-sectlons of the locomotive on a curve in the railway track.

Housed within therear end portion of the body la of the main section l is'a horizontal steam boiler 8, which, in the illustrated instance, is reversely arranged from the standpoint of customary practice,- i. e., with its iire box 9 forward and positioned substantially vmid-way of the two supporting drive units I0 and -ii -so that there is nothing in the way of direct downward discharge of the ashes therefrom. With lthe boilerV arranged as described, the front end of the main body ia is utilized as a. compartment for fuel storage, and the body 2a of the trailer 2 as a compartment for storage of replenishing water for the boiler. When coal is used for fuel, a suitable .stoker means may be installed for conveying it as required into the -re box 9 ofthe boiler 8.

The powered drive units I0 and il are identical both as regards their design and their arrangement relative to the body of the main section I, and I will therefore confine the description for the time being to the forward one of the two. As shown, the unit i0 has three pairs o1' driving wheels i 2, i3 Aand I 4 whereof the axles are flournaled ina.` frame l5 which is swivelly connected to the body la for pivotal movement at I8. At its front end and at each side of the locomotive,

the frame i5 carries the steam cylinder I1 of a As herein illustrated, my improved locomotive v means of a draw bar I (Fig. 2) although, for this purpose, an ordinary coupler may be employed Il reciprocating engine having its piston rod I8 coupled, by means of a main driving rod Il, with the crank pin of the middle driver i3, the drivers i2|4 being coupled for unison rotation by a. l

parallel rod 2m The auxiliary truck directly ahead of the forwarddriver I2 has-smallerforc v and aft wheels-12|, and 21 centralised with respect A to the cylinder I 1, and its frame 23 swivelled centrally for independent pivotal movement relative to the frame I5 at 25. Since the rear powered driving unit Il is identical with the front one as before pointed out, its component parts have been identified with the same reference numerals ex- As another alternative, the arrangement of the boiler may be reversed (fire box to the rear) within the body Ia of the main section, the front compartment 5 utilized for water storage-and the body 2a ofthe trailer 2 utilized for fuel storage.

The body of the trailer 2 is supported by a pair of six-wheeled trucks 26, 2l whereof the frames 28, 29 are connected on centers to the trailer adjacent its ends for independent swivellin'g movement at 30 and 3 I.

It is vto be particularly noted that the individually powered drive units I0 and II are well spaced to provide room between them for la boiler ash pan of maximum size, and also to permit direct downward discharge of the ashes from said pan. It will moreover be observed that the pivots I6 and ISa for the drive units I0 and II are well rearward of the longitudinal centers of the main truck frames I5 and I5a being actually located at a point between the axles of the rearmost pairs of drivers Iii, I4, and I3a, Ida; while the pivot connections 25, 25a are central of the auxiliary small-wheeled advance trucks. As a consequence of this, the body of the main unit I of the locomotive will take the position shown in Fig. 3 in rounding curves in a railway track 32, with the front and rear ends and the mid-region of the body swung out to comparatively short but approximately equal distances beyond opposite sides of said track. Under these circumstances and by reason of the fact that the boilcr and fuel loads are concentrated on the pivots I6 and I6a which remain on, the track center (indicated by the curved dot-and-dash line 33 in Fig. 3), the unit is stabilized or maintained in balance so that the curves can be readily negotiated. The

loadvdistribution due to the described allocation l of the pivots d6 and I6a at the locations shown has the further` advantage of insuring the most effective adhesion between the drivers of the power units I0 and II and the track rails, to the end that the maximum driving effect is attained.

The small wheels 2I, 22 and 2Ia, 22a of the auxiliary trucks, by virtue of being in the lead of the drivers of the respective power units I0 and II cooperate to guide the drivers of said units. Since both trucks 26 and 2'I of the trailer unit 2 vare centrally pivoted to the trailer body 2a, track curves are followed without any difficulty whatever, the coupling at 3 and the bellows connection at 'I allowing for the lateral displacement of the rear end of the main unit relativevto the contiguous end of said trailer in a manner which will be readily understood from Fig. 3.

vI-laving thus described my invention, I claim: 1. In a steam locomotive,a body having at its front end, a storage compartment for fuel or water and housing in its other end an elongate horizontal boiler with the iire box thereof forward; and independently swiveled steam-powered trucks `respectively beneath the storage compartment and the. boiler, the pivotal connections for said trucks being so allocated that the extents of front and center overhang of the body beyond opposite sides of the track will be substantially equal during rounding of curves by the locomotive, and each such truck comprising a journal frame with plural pairs of drivers, and an auxiliary wheeled truck pivoted to said frame forward of said drivers with capacity for independent swiveling movement.

2. In a steam locomotive, a body having at its front end, a storage compartment for fuel or water and housing in its other end an elongatev horizontal boiler with the fireV box thereof forward; and independently swiveled steam-powered trucks respectively beneath the storage compartment and the boiler, the pivotal connections being rearward of the transverse centers of the respective trucks and so allocated that the extents of front and center overhang of the body beyond opposite sides of the track will be substantially equal during rounding of curves by the locomotive, and each such truck comprising a Journal frame with three pairs of drivers, and an auxiliary wheeled truck pivoted to said frame forward of said drivers with capacity for inde pendent swiveling.

3. In a steam locomotive, a body having at its front end, a storage compartment for fuel or water and housing in its other end an elongate horizontal boiler with the fire box thereof forward; and independently swiveled steam-powered trucks respectively beneath the storage compartment and the boiler, the pivotal connections for said trucks being so allocated that the extents of front and center overhang of the body beyond opposite ysides of the track will be substantially two rear pairs of the drivers, and an auxiliary truck with two pairs oi' smaller wheels pivoted to said-frame forward of said drivers with capacity for independent swiveling movement.

4. In a steam locomotive, a body having at its front end, a storage compartment for fuel or water and Vhousing in its other end an elongate horizontal boiler with the fire box thereof forward; and independently swiveled steam-powered trucks respectively beneath the storage compartment and the boiler, the pivotal connections for said trucks being so allocated that the extents of front and center overhang of the body beyond opposite sides of the track will be substantially equal during rounding of,curves by the locomotive, and each such truck comprising a journal frame with plural pairs of drivers. an auxiliary truck with two pairs of smaller wheels pivoted to the frame forward of the drivers with capacity for independent swiveling movement, and actuating cylinders for said drivers mounted on said frame respectively at opposite sides of the locomotive in the plane of the pivot for said auxiliary truck.v

CARLETON K. STEINS.

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