US2508748A - Suspension railway - Google Patents

Description

May 23, I1950 w. c. .cox 2,508,748

SUSPENSION RAILWAY Filed Feb. 6, 1946 ample. 0" vll FIG. 2 FIG. '5 F|G 4 INVENTOR.

WALTER c. cox

ATTORNEY Patented May 23, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SUSPENSION RAILWAY Walter C. Cox, Denver, Colo.

Application February 6, 1946, Serial No. 645,827

3 Claims. (Cl. 10S- 155) This invention relates to improvements in suspension railways and has for its object the production of a novel railway track and means for suspending a car therefrom.

There are many places where railways are required where the business does not justify the expense of building a regular railway and it is the object of this invention to produce a simple construction of railway that can be readily be built in any place, regardless of the contour of the land, at a comparatively low cost.

The ordinary railway construction requires the rails to be laid on a solid road bed and limited quite strictly as to inclination or grade, and such construction requires much grading and other expensive operations.

The railway that forms the subject matter of this application does not require the ground to be graded and therefore removes one of the largest items of expense in connection with railway construction.

This invention, briefly described, consists in providing a number of inverted U-shaped supports that have their lower ends embedded in the ground, preferably in concrete blocks, and whose upper or curved ends are cut, forming a central opening. Rails are positioned on opposite sides of Ythe opening and a railway car suspended from them.

The whole weight of the car is supported by the wheels that rest on the rails and therefore a high friction is obtained that makes it possible for the car to travel over grades that would be prohibitive for a railway of ordinary construction.

Having thus stated the objects of the invention and, in a general way, its construction, the railway will now be described in greater detail and for this purpose reference will be had to the accompanying drawing in which the invention has been illustrated, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation showing a short section of the railway track with a car in position thereon;

Figure 2 is a front end elevation taken looking through plane 2-2, Figure 1;

. Figure 3 is a section taken on line 3-3, Figure 2, showing the parts to an enlarged scale; and

Figure 4 is a section taken on line 4 4, Figure 3.

In the drawing reference numeral I designates the surface of the ground and reference numeral II the U-shaped supports, while reference numeral I2 designates the rails.

The supports are formed in the shape of an ordinary wire staple or an inverted U. The side members I3 extend into the surface of the ground and are preferably embedded in concrete blocks I4. The upper ends of the supports are curved inwardly on the arc of a circle as indicated at I5. Transverse frame members I6 are provided, and, in addition thereto, diagonal braces I'I may be provided to hold the support from moving laterally during operation.

It will be observed from Figure 4 that the supports are separated at the top as indicated by reference numeral IS and secured to each ofthe adjacent ends are rails I2. The rails may be of any suitable construction, but have been shown as formed somewhat like ordinary railway rails.

The car, which has been designated by reference numeral I9 in Figure 1, is provided with a floor 20, vertical side walls 2| and an arched roof 22, which is curved about the same center as parts I5 of the supports. The car may be provided with passenger seats 23 `and suitable windows, if it is to be used for passenger travel. If the railway is to be used more particularly for freight, suitable modifications of the car are made. Resting on the rails I2 in spaced relation, are two two-wheel trucks, each truck comprising two wheels that have been designated by reference numeral 24 and which have inner and outer flanges 25. The wheels are connected by an axle 26 that carries a sprocket wheel 2'I. The car is provided at a point above its center of gravity with a transversely extending shaft 28 that is journaled in bearings 29. Shaft 28 carries a sprocket wheel Sil. A sprocket chain 3l encircles sprocket wheels 2l and 30 and serves both to support the weight of the car and to transmit power to wheels 2li. As shown in Figure 1, there are two supporting trucks. Positioned within the chamber 32 is an engine 32a of any suitable type, such as a Diesel or ordinary internal combustion engine or an electric motor. This is connected with shaft 28 and rotates the same. When shaft 28 rotates, it turns wheels 24 on their axles and, since these rest on the top rails I2, the car will move along the rails. As a safety feature, two steel links 33 interconnect shafts 26 and 23. The weight of the car is supported by the sprocket chains 3| during operation and links 34 do not ordinarily support any load. However, if the sprocket chain should break, the weight of the car will then be supported by the links which will prevent the end of the car from dropping down, if a break ocu curs. The links are provided with oblong openrigid bar 3ilthat "serves to mined spaced relation;

-terial are to be 'transported The sides of the car are provided with con-v cave rails 36 and rubber tired wheels 3l may be mounted for rotation on the supporting frame. In case the car should move outwardly, due to i centrifugal force, or otherwise, the rails 36 will Y contact with the wheels 31`and limit such out` ward movement to a predetermined amount andY prevent the car from hitting the Vertical sup-A ports.

^ If aninternal combustion engine like a gasoline engine is'use'd, the powerunit can be contained entirely inthe compartment '32. 'If an electric motoris used, suitable'means comprising atroll ley fmust kbe Vprovided totransmit' current 'to' the motor. i Although the invention 'has been Villustrated.

--and used-'in connectionwith'a'passenger car,'it -is tobe understood that the car may be used for transportation of freight entirely and that its shape 'may be varied so as to obtain the best re- ?As thistrain is intendedfor high speed travel,

Vthey car lispreferably'streamlined, but it may be ofanyshape desired.

^ The railway-is especially well adapted for use in mountainous regions for example, in a mining region, 'Tor carrying ore and other equipment'. "The carbodymay'be of any length or'size desired. The windows which have been illustratedv in the drawing and designated by reference numeral d38'may be` omitted; The trucks'are preferably interconnected by 'a keep them in 'predeter- Attention is also Y"directed to the fact that although the railway suitable for transporting passengers and freight, itis also of a construction that can vvbe used where small quantities of' maka'iid the" size can therefore v'be greatly varied.

"The truckshavebeen shown and described as having twowh'eeis each. "It isl tobe understood 'that each `truck may havetwo pairs of4 wheels where` thisis found to be' desirable.

lPower may be transmitted to'one truck only, or to bothv as may'bedesired. The endless power transmission *element 3i "'has`"been'shown`and' de'- scribed asia sprocket chain.` lIt lis tcibe understood, however; that any 4other equivalent power transmission element may be substituted, such, for example, as one or more V-typebeltsor fiat belts, etc. Where sprocket wheels and sprocket chains are mentionedythese-termsare-to be con# strued-to include Amechanical equivalents.

=`-From Figure-4 it lwillfbe"observed that each wheel 24 has twoflanges, one engaging the inside and the other the outside of the corresponding rail.' vllanges 'l'.ikeep thefrailsV in properly spaced relation at fall times andfprevent them from approaching each other orsp'reading.

i If it is found necessary or'desirable, the ends of the supports maybe interconnected by a yoke 40 like that shown in Figure 2. The wheels may have rubber tires 4I, or the rails may have a rubber strip vulcanized to their upper surfaces as indicated by numeral 42 in Figure 4. The rubber tires 5 and/or the rubber surfaced rails deaden sounds and make the railway practically noiseless.

Having described the invention what is claimed as new is:

1. A suspension railway comprising, a plurality .of inverted'U-shapedsupports, the lower ends of vthe legs thereof. being sec'urd t a railway bed and the arch of the U being arcuate and severed jrat the center thereof to form an opening, railway 4rails secured to the supports on each side of the openings therein, a truck having at least one :pair of: double flanged wheels mounted on the rails, acar body positioned between the supports andrundernathithe arch, a shaft positioned in the voar and mounted to rotate about an axis extending transversely thereof, means comprising a mpwrarried by .the Cari-for rotating the Shaft, inea-HS 'fjor ltreniftierqtary 'nio n 'from the Shaft to the wheelsfaridfo supp A, ng' the car from 'theV truck',"comp endless power a img mesenteric the l'eel'sarnd safetylinks ,ruckfto Slllppfort the transmission y in ,accordance with fine' ",U erased Sup'- the'car body 1 A, al veine'ntfthereof.

shaped supports 'the4 lower ends of vand thearcli o f th" AUbeirig varcuate. and severed tithe center thereof toorril, entregara', railway rails -secured itofth-y supports on e opening'ther'ein,twotriik's'mi mais interconnecting ,the-tru spaced 'rel tion," ijlrf'k'ljiavA atleast'cne "Wheelsthiigesserifirigfto hbld the X ils" from relative tfansverse `r`ci'emerit.aspr k f i Depentientes" the space 'bet 'the verticai sides 'crime suppcrtsb'eiieatli'the arches thereof,A two shafts 50 extending transyerselyl of thezcan spaced th'e saine distance" The -followifl refer aire -araefe'ecerd the file 'of this patent: Y

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