US293263A

US293263A - Combined car brake and coupler

Info

Publication number: US293263A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1884-02-12
Anticipated expiration: 1901-02-12

Description

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. Y E. B. MEATYARD.

COMBINED GAR BRAKE AND GOUPLER. 'l

Patented Peb. 12, *1884L lig "IIHIHIIII EDwAED E. MEATYAED,

PATENT OFFICE.

or GENEVA, wisconsin;

COMBINED CAR BRAKE A ND COUPLER.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters-Patent No. 293,263, dated February 12, 1884.

Application filed July 7, 1882.v (No model.) l

To @ZZ whom, it mm1/y concern:

Be it known thatl, EDWARD B. MEATYAED, a citizen ofthe United States, residing at Geneva, in the county of Valworth, in the State of Visconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Combined Car Brakes I and Couplers, which are fully set forth in the following specication, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, `in which- Figure l. is a top plan view of a car-truck provided with lmy improvements. 'Figf2 is a bottom plan view of the same broken away at one side. Fig. 3 is a section on the line w :c in Fig. 1. Fig. 4. is a section on the line y y in Fig. 1the intersected wheels not 4the brakes are automatically operated by the coupling apparatus; and the objects of it are, first, to provide a link-coupling mechanism more readily attachable and detachable than `those now in use, and, second, to provide a braking mechanism automatically operated by the coupling mechanism, so Vthat the brakes shall always be applied, except when motion is communicated to the train from the locomotive, and that in the latter'ease, whichever the direction ofthe motion, the brakes shall be takenoi'f, and this by devices much simpler and less expensive than any automatic braking mechanism now in use. To these ends itu consists, partly,in vthe combination of the traction-springs with a lever having a fixed fulcrum, with a rod pivoted to one arm of the lever after the manner of a toggle-joint, and with mechanism pivotally connecting the rod with the brake-bars, so that the latter shall be forced apart or drawn toward 'each other, according as the lever and rod are brought into or out of a continuous line by the elasticity of the springs; and it consists, further, in the several devices and combinations of devices, which l will now proceed to describe, and will afterward point out definitely in the claims.

In the drawings, A denotes a pair oflongitudinal beams, which aidin supporting the flooring of the car.

B denotes the buffer, which is a rectangular boX in general form, but enlarged at the front end, where it is open, into a iiaring circular rim, B.

The coupler C, which is inclosed within the buffer, is in general form an Ibeam, itsl flanges resting, respectively, against the top and bottom of the buffer, and its web, which extends for but a comparatively short distance betweenthe middle parts of the flanges being re-entrantly curved at its forward end. This coupler is rigidly attached near its inner end to the draw-bar D by means of a pin, G, passing through holes in the flanges of thecoupler and through an eyedlnut, D', which screws onto the forward end of the draw-bar. pin passes through slots in the upper and lower plates of the buffer, by means of which the coupler has a limited'longitudinal play in the buffer. Similar slots in the 'flanges of passage of another upright pin, G2, whose lower end rests on the bottom of the buffer, while its upper end passes through a hole in the top of the buffer and rises ashort distance above it. The. hole is just large enough to allow an easy upward-and-downward movement of the pin. rThrough the upper end of this pin passes a horizontal pin, E, which extends beyond the buffer on each side, and is secured at each end in an upright rod, E. The rods E pass each through a guidedug, B, on its side of the buffer to a point some distance below it, where their lower ends are connected pins E and forming a clevis, which keeps the pin C2 upright and limits its upwardmotion. Around the middle of the pin E2 is passed the forward end of a'bar-spring, F, the rear end of which is rigidly attached-to the lower plate of the buffer, near its rear end. This spring draws the pin C2 downward whenever the buffer is pushed in, and at the same time cheeks the force of its descent, so that its lower end does not strike the bottom of the buffer violently.` The spring is made the coupler toward its forward end admit the by another horizontalfpin, E?, the rods E and` This IOO

light, so that there may be no difficulty in raisl ening at the sides, which (though less than in ing the pin C2 when necessary, to let the coupling-link G passbehind it.

One great difliculty in the practical working of traction-brakes heretofore has been that they have been applied to standard coupler and buffer springs which h ave astren gth of fro m ten thousandto eighteen thousand pounds.

' Now, it is obvious that the traction-springs of these brakes should yield at least half their stroke to the resistance of a single car, or the car-brakes will not be taken off. A single car weighing eighty thousand pounds (more than ordinary weight) on a good level track should not offer resistance much greater than two hundred pounds. It will be seen, then, that in a .train-say forty such cars-the tractionsprings neXt to the engine would have about eight thousand pounds tractile resistance to oppose the ten thousand pounds strength of the ordinary spring, or nearly enough to take off the brake at the forward car; but going back, this force would be diminished ear by ear, so that on most of the cars of the train the brakes would remain set to a greater or less degree, increasing toward the rear of the train. It must be evident, therefore, thatlight springs must be used, and it is one of the essential features of my invention to employ weak traction-springs which may be overcome by the traetile resistance of a single car.

Across the inner end ofthe link G lies a light bar, H, which also rests in the bottom ofavertical slot in each side wall of the buffer, and is eX- tended upward' at each end, the two ends meeting in a sort of arch some distance above the cross-pin E, and being enlarged to form a bas ket-like support, H', for the weight l at the inner end of the uncoupling-lever I. rllhe ends of the cross-pin E pass through the upright parts of the bar H, and are rigidly set in them, so that whenever the pin GZ is lifted the bar H is lifted with it, and is thus taken out of the way of an entering link. A chain, l2, connects the upper end of the pin C2 with the uncouplinglever. The fulcrum F of this lever rests on a bracket projecting from the forward crossbeam of the car-platform, and is placed near the end to which the power is applied, in order to effect rapid operation, the weight to be lifted being slight. The bracket is horizontally pivoted to the beam, so that the position of the lever accommodates itself to the inward and outward movements of the buffer. The pin C2 may be made so long that its lower end will touch the bottom of the buffer before it has reached the limit of downward motion allowed by the clevis, so that when the lower the iniddle) is still considerable, affords a-fulcrum for the link to oscillate on, so that it may accommodate itself to any difference of level in the two cars coupled. To facilitate the entry of the link into the buffer, the flaring mouth B is concave above and below on its inner surface. At its inner end the buffer terminates in a sleeve, B, in which the drawbar has a longitudinal play, regulated by a coiled spring, D2, which surrounds it between the nut D and the rear end of the buffer. The rear end of they sleeve B3 passes through the front wall of the box-like frame K of the main traction-spring K, and rests against the elastic washer or cushion Y2, which is itself close to the forward end of the spring. By this means the buffer itself vis allowed a slight longitudinal play. The cushion has a central perforation large enough to allow the drawbar to pass through, as it does also through a similar washer or cushion, K, similarly placed at the rear end ofthe spring. K3, however, terminates in a sleeve of diminished diameter, and a lug-nut, D, is screwed on the rear end ofthe drawbar and against the rear end of the sleeve, so that the draw-bar has no motion relatively to the washer K. rllhe spring K surrounds the draw-bar, and its two ends press, respectively, against the two washers. rlhe sleeve portion of the washer K3 passes through the rear wall of the frame K. The frame K is fastened at both sides to the floor-timbers A, and the backward and forward movements of the buffer are limited by the contact of the rear yand front washers, respectively, with the rear and front walls of the frame.

By means of the eyes of the lug-nutD, the bar or rod L, which connects the coupling with the brake mechanism, is hinged to the rear end of the draw-bar; or, if the coupling mechanism be used without connecting with the brake, a gravitation-lever may be suspended The washer IOO IIO

from these eyes, and will serve t-he purpose of a nut-lock.

The brake-bars M, which are arranged between the axles, are parallel to each other and perpendicular to' the plane of the wheels at the ends, where the brake-shoes are attached, but are bent away from each other in their middle parts, so as to afford room between them for the toggle N, which operates them, and at the same time to keep the brake-shoes M' parallel to the convex surfaces ofthe wheels. Each arm of the toggle isbifurcated, as shown (partly by dotted lines) in Fig. 2, so that the motion of the toggle is kept vertical without the necessity of guides to prevent it from veering to the one side or the other. This construction also serves to distribute the stress on the brake-bar by applying the force at two points. The toggle is arranged, as shown in Fig. 3, so that the upward motion of the joint nected, as shown inFig. 3, by a vertical rod; N and cross-bar O, with the double bentlever the double lever I. The rod O2 is' made in Aro two lengths, which are held Vtogether by the blnding-nut o?, so that the rod is adjustable in length. The lever Pis fulcrumed on the cross-bar P', which is rigidly attached to the under sides of the longitudinal beams A. The

ler.

f point to the rod R.` This rod extends hori" zontally backward between the beams A and' upper ends of the lever are joined by a crossbar, p, which passes through the rod L, and is thus connected with the draw-bar and coup- The rod L extends beyond the cross-bar p, and is connected at its inner end by a hook or link with one end of the vibrating arm Q. This arm is horizontally pivoted at its middle hooks into the coiled spring R', which is fastened at its other end to the bar R2, set in the beams A at the inner end of the truck. The other end of the rocking arm Q is pivotally connected with the rod S, which extends forward between the beams A, and is connected with the chain S of the ordinary hand-lever.

draw down the free end of the bent lever O,

thereby straightening y, the arms of the toggle and holding the brakes on. The brakes are thus always on unless some special force is exerted to .take themoft. This is supplied, when necessary, by the pull of the link on the pin C, and consequently on the buffer and the draw-bar, which is exerted as soon as the train begins to move forward. This pull draws the lever l? and rod O2 out of the ver"` tical position, andthus lifts the free end of the lever O, thenebyraising the joint of the toggle and drawing the brake-bars together, so that the brakes are taken off. This position of the mechanism is shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings. be the case when the locomotive stops, the springs K and B are left to their normal operation, which again applies the brakes. If, now, the locomotive should be backed, the buffer would be pushed inward, carrying the draw-bar with it, and again resulting in the deflection of the lever P and rod O2 from a perpendicular, and consequently in the lifting of the joint of the toggle N and the taking oft' of the brakes, so that they would offer no As soon as this pull ceases, which willl obstruction to the backing of the train. Thus I. secure an automatic application of the brakes at all times (including the case of a car standing detached) when motion is not desirable, and an automatic removal of them 1ivheliever the train is drawn forward or pushed I retain the ordinary hand-lever apparatus for the purpose of taking olf the brakes when it is necessary to move a detached car. It may also be used as an auxiliary to putting on the brakes of a train of cars at the start.

The lever O might be pivoted near the outer end of the truck, instead of the arrangement shown in the drawings. It would then require a greater force to operate it, but would operate more rapidly.

At each end of the brake-bar I fasten the lower end of a strut-spring, T, whose upper end is fastened in like manner to the crossbeam. The tendency of these springs is to force the bars apart, and thus furnish an additional security that the brakes shall always be applied,except when for some special reason it is requisite to take them off.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The hollow open-mouthed buffer B, in combination with the couplerI C, the pin C', rigidly affixed to the coupler, but arranged to have a limited backward and forward play in the buffer, and the pin C2, arranged to have a vertical play in both coupler and buffer and a limited longitudinal play in the former only, and means for lowering and raising the pin G2, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. The buer B, coupler C, upright pin C, horizontalpins E and E2, guidingrods E', and mechanism for lifting the pin E, all in combination, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. The buffer B, coupler C, upright pin C?, horizontal pins E and E2, guiding-rods E', bar H, shaped and arranged as described, spring F, arranged as described, and means for lifting the pin E, all in combination, substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. In atraction car-brake,the bifurcated toggle-arms N and N', connected with and arranged to operate two or more brake-bars, in combination. with vreadily-yielding draw-bars, and mechanism for connecting the knuckle of the toggle-arms with the draw-bar, substantially as and for the purposes set forth. A

5. The springs K and R', lever l?, arranged asdescribed,mechanism connecting the springs with each other and with one end of the lever, rod O2, arranged substantially as described, bent lever O, connecting-rod N', toggle N, and brakebarsM, all in combination, substantially as and for the purposes described.

' EDWARD B.- MEATYABD.

Witnesses:

JNO. C. MACGREGOR, H. D. HoLLrsTER.

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