US262438A

US262438A - Railroad-rail joint

Info

Publication number: US262438A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1882-08-08
Anticipated expiration: 1899-08-08

Description

lNO Model.)

F. LIGHTPOOT.

RAILROAD RAIL JOINT.

No. 262,438. Patented Aug. 8, 1882.

WITNESSES: INVE UNITE STATES PATENT EFtcE.

FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT, OF MEDIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO BENJAMIN H. LIGHTFOO'I, OF ALLEGHENY, AND JAMES M. PRICE, OF LANSDOWNE,

PENNSYLVANIA.

RAILROAD-RAIL JOINT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 262,438, dated August 8, 1882.

Application filed March 30, 1882.

. To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANCIS LIGHTFOO'I, a citizen of the United States, residing at Media, in the county of Delaware, State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement-in Railroad-Rail Joints, which improvement is fully set forth in the following specification and accompanying drawings, in which y Figure 1 is a top or plan view of a railroadrail embodying myinvention. Fig. 2 is a side elevatioirthereof. Fig. 3 isa horizontal section in line w .r, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a vertical section thereof.

1 Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

My invention consists of railroad-rails having their ends upset and so shaped that they retain their full weight of metal and lap one another, and so that when the rails are connected the tread of the rails at the ends is of the same width as the original rails, and the rails possess great strength, simplicity, and smoothness, as will be hereinafter fully set forth.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the ends of two adjacent rails of a railroad, which ends from the point a are upset and stamped or wrought to about half the width of the re- 0 mainder of the rails, whereby the tread of the upset ends of the two connected rails which lap one another form a tread of thesame width as the original rails. By upsetting the rails at their ends, as stated, they are not weakened 5 or impaired, but retain their full weight of metal, whereby the ends are strong and durable, or even stronger and more durable than the remaining length of the rails. Furthermore, as the ends of the rails lap one another,

the wheels of the cars or train run on both treads, thus preventingjumpingof the wheels from one rail to another or the jarring of the wheels in making transit over the joints and the injury of the texture of the rails, wheels,

5 and axles by cold-hammerin In order to connect the lapped'ends of the rails, I pass through openings in the samebolts B B, which are provided with tightening-nuts,

(No model.)

and, furthermore, form on the end of each rail between the tread and base a longitudinally- 5o projecting lip, O, which overlaps the neck of adjacent rail between the heads A and base A thereof, thus serving to connect the ends of two adjacent rails at their sides and preventing rising thereof. The inner face of the end portion of one railis also formed with atongue,

b, and that of the other rail with a groove, 0, the tongue and groove extending horizontally and longitudinally and interlocking, thus permitting the ends to move on each other dur- 6o ing expansion and contraction of therails, and also serving to prevent the rising of the rails at the joint. Again, the point or shoulder a of one rail is opposite the extreme end of the other rail, and this, with the other provisions stated, obviates the necessity of fish-plates at the joints of the rails.

In the drawings I show a plate, D, for lockingthe nuts of the bolts B, this, however, forming no part of the present invention.

The contour of the joint of the rails formed by the upset ends thereof may be either the full or dotted lines shown in Fig. l or varied.

I am aware that it is not new to provide a rail with a lip or lug which is introduced into a recess in a second rail to lock the two together. I therefore do not broadly claim the same.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. Railroadrails having their contiguous ends upset so as to be reducedin width though retaining full weight, the upset ends lapping so as to form a tread about equal to that of I the full rail.

2. A railway-rail having a longitudinallyprojecting lip, O, in combination with a second rail, said lip being introduced into the space between the tread and the base of said second railand overlapping the neck thereof, substantially as shown.

FRANS. LIGHTFOOT. Witnesses:

JOHN A. WIEDERSHEIM, A. P. GRANT.