US398353A - stitzel - Google Patents

Description

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F. STITZEL 8v C. WEINEDEL.

SBMAPHORB SXGNAL.

Patented Feb. 19, 18894.

(No Model.)

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet, 2.

P. STITZEL 8u C. WBINEDEL.

SBMAPHORB SIGNAL.

310.393,353. Patented Feb. 13, 1339.

(No Model.)4 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

I'. STITZELKTl O. WEINEDEL.

SEMAPHORB SIGNAL.

- No; 398,353. y Patented Peb. 19, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE@ FREDERICK STITZEL AND CHARLES VVEINEDEL, OE LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, ASSIGNORS TO THE AMERICAN SEMAPHORE COMPANY, CF SAME PLACE.

SEMAPHORE-SIGNAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 398,353, dated February 19, 1889.

Application filed March 24, 1888. Serial No. 268,406. (No model.)

To @ZZ when?, it may concern:

Be it known that we, FREDERICK STITZEL and CHARLES WEINEDEL, of Louisville, in the county of Jefferson and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Im.- provements in Semaphore-Sig'nals; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to semapllore-signalingapparatus, and more particularly to such as employ the combined forces ot electricity and pncumatics in their operation.

ple in construction and eiective in operation. A further object is to furnish a device to `move a semaphore or other signal automatically when a train enters or leaves a block of l a railroad.

A further object is to provide a signaling apparatus in which Huid pressure is einployed as a motive power and electricity as a controller.

A further object is to so construct the device that it shall have a small number of working parts, dispense with the use of stuffingH boxes and spring, and provide simple and efcient means by which i'luid is admitted to and emitted from the cylinder automatically.

With these objects in view our invention consists in certain novel features of construction and peculiar combinations and arrangemen ts of parts, as will be hereinafter set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a sectional view of a signal-tower, showing the positions of the parts when the signalblade is set at danger. View, partly broken away, and showing the positions of the parts when the signal-blade the attachment ot' the apparatus to the visual signalfbladcs. Fig. -L is a top plan view ot' the lever Il.

equally well applicable to other methods of railroad or other signaling.

A indicates a tower or structure, prcterably of cylindrical form, and provided with 5 5 anism which connects the visual blade with 6o its actuating inchanism. At a suitable point in the height; ot' the structure, preferably somewhat abo'ie its center, a floor or partition, A2, is provided, which serves the twofold y purpose ot supporting the operative parts The object of our present invention is to g provide a signaling device which shall be simcomposing the apparatus, and also producing a chamber, B, Vfor the reception of compressed air for a purpose presently explained..

A pump, C, of any preferred construction,

is placed upon the floor A2 at or near the wall 7o pump C with the chamber or reservoir ,B

through the Hoor A2, as shown in Fig. l., the purpose of this pump being' to force air into the chamber B, and the pump may, if desired, be located outside of the tower and put into communication with the air-chamber 8o in any suitable manner instead of being lo* Fig. 2 is a similar suitable point in its length with a piston, E',

This device is designed more particularly tor use with railroads upon which the block i system is employed, and will be described in connection with such syst-em.

however, that the signaling apparatus is It is evident,

cated within the tower, as above explained.

A cylinder, D, is secured to the under side ot' the roof ot' the structure by means of two or more laterally-projectiug arms, l1 b, having 85 suitable fastening devices passing through them and into the root. This cylinder D is preferably made in two parts or sections, D D2, the lower portion or cylinder proper, D2,

projecting' downwardly from the supporting- 9e arms b at or about the center of the tower and the smaller portion, D', extending above the. arms and into the Steeple A', as shown is at safety. Fig. 3 is a side view showing in Figs. l and 2. Vithin the c dinder is lo rocating motion therein and provided at a to work within the cylinder proper, D2, as presently explained, the upper end of this rod extending into the upper portion, D', of the Ioo cylinder and the lower end projected some distance below the cylinder, its downward movement being limited by' a stop',` f, secured to the vfloor A2.

Air is introduced to the upper end o'f the cylinder proper, 'D2 ,by means of a pipe, c, which communicates with the air-chamber ll through a-double valve, F. 'lhis valve is advisably composed ot a short tube, d, inserted through the floor A2 at or near its center, and two disks or blocks, d d?, carried at opposite ends of a rod, d, somewhat longer than the tube al and preferably supported by a spring, (Z4, secured at one end tothe partition A2 and bearing at its other end upon the end of the rod d3, said valve being controlled by means hereinafter described.

The cylinder l)2 is furnished with exhaustports c at points preferably below iis center, as shown in Figs. l and 2.

Located 'upon the Iio'or A2, at a point preferably slightly distant from its center, is a standard or upright, G, 'for the support of a lever, H, pivoted to this standard in any suitable manner. lever is provided with an adjustable counterbalance-weight, l, while the extremity of the longer arm is furnished with a projection, g, adapted to engage a stop, g', secured to the wall of the structure and prevent this endof the lever ascending too far. Directly above the fulcrum 71` of the lever ll said leveris furnished with two integral ears, t' IL', which, be-

ing perforated, serve as .bearings for journals oit' a short lever or stop, J', pivoted between them, the short arm of this lever being preferably bent slightly downwardly to engage a tapering projection, .l Vformed upon or secured to the piston-rod E, which passes through a perforation, J2, in the lever H, and prevent the upward movement of said rod when the parts are in the positions shown in Fig. 2. This lever or stop J will, however, yield and permit the stop on the rod E to pass it during the downward movement of said rod. The longer arm of the lever H is provided near its free end with ears j j, which serve as bearings for the journals of a lever or stop, K, adapted to yield when struck from one direction and remain rigid when engaged from the opposite direction.

A standard or upright, M, is mounted upon the floor A2, near the wall of the structure, and carries at or near its upper end a pivoted'T-lever, N, the depending arm N of said lever bein adapted to pass through a recess, 7u, made in one side of the lever H. A V- shaped projection, N?, on the arm N of lever N engages the stop K of the lever H, and retains said lever in its horizontal position when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 2. The outer end of the recess L of the lever H Vis preferably made beveled, and serves as a rest or abutment for the lower end of the arm N of lever N when the parts assume the positions shown in Fig. l. An arm, N2, of lever N is furnished with a soft-iron armature, 0, to be attracted by an electro-magnet, O, supported directly over the armature by a bracket,

The shorter arm, H', of this' O2, secured to the wall of the structure. Another arm, Ni", of the lever N is adapted to make contact with'tlic stop g, and thus prevent thc armature O from approaching too close to the magnet O.

Mounted upon the arm N2, between the fulcrum of the lever and the armature O, is a block or washer, of leather, rubber, or other suitable material, N", which, when the armature t) is attracted by the magnet, will close the end ot' a pipe, l, which communicates with the cylinder D, preferably at or near the upper end of the portion D2.

The valve F is operated by means of a depending arm, P, pivoted to the short arm H of the lever H, near the fulcrum of the lever, and is provided at its lower extremity with an A-shaped head, P', adapted to strike and move the valve when the lever H turns on its fulcruni to assume the position shown in Fig. 2.

The free ends of the wires leading from the electro-magnet O are connected to the rails of a railroad-track (one wire to each track) at one end of a block, and a battery is elee trically connected to the rails at the opposite end of the block.

Pivotcd to the rod E, near its` lower end, preferably just above the A-shaped head m at the lower end of said rod, is a yoke or frame, Q, advisably of metal. This yoke or frame, being thus pivoted to the rod E, is extended upwardly on the outside of the cylinder D and into the steeplc A', where its free ends are united by a rod or pin, n. The upright portions of the yoke Q are preferably passed through perforated lugs or ears pro-v jecting from the cylinder I), thus serving te guide the yoke Q in its movements.

Mounted in the steeplc A is a sprocketwheel, R, carrying a visual-signal blade, o', at one end of its shaft, said blade being preferably painted a different color from the shield, and adapted to be hid by the shield when t-he signal is set to indicate safety. A drive or sprocket chain, R', is passed over the wheel R, and has a weight, R2, attached to one end, while the opposite end of said chain lis secured to the rod n of the yoke Q; Thus it will be seen that as the yoke Q moves up and down, as presently explained, the signalblade o will be turned from its shield to exhibit a danger-signal or into its shield to indicate safety Y The device being constructed as above described operates as follows: The tank or chamber 13 being lled with air or other fluid by means of the pump C or otherwise, and assuming the signal to be at safety and the parts in. the position shown in Fig. Q, a train entering the block will short-circuit the battery and demagnetizc the magnet O. The electro-magnet O being thus demagnetized, the lever N carrying the armature O will turn on its pivot and thus release the long arm of the lever H and open the valve N5. The weight R2 of the chain R overbalances the weight of IOO 398,353 i .fi

the rod E and attached parts, and conscquently the stop J on said rod bears upon the stop .I of the lever II with a pressure ex,- ceeding that ot' the conuterbalance-weiglit I on said lever. rlhis being the case, as soon as the lever N is permitted to turn on Aits fulcrum the lever ll is turned on its fulcrum by pressure of the stopJ against the stop J, and the end of the arm N of the lever il will rest on the inclined portion of the recess it and hold the lever H in an inclined position, as shown in Fig. l. vWhen the lever H releases the rod E, as above explained, said rod is caused to rise by the overbalanee of the weight R2, the chain connecting this weight with the yoke Q causing the shaft carrying the visual signal to turn and thus exhibit said signal to view. The ends of the pipes c and Zbeing open, the piston E will be permitted to rise freely, any air in the cylinder' being allowed to escape through these pipes. Vhen the lever H is turned, the rod P is caused to swing rearwardly slightly until the head P is directly over the valve F. As soon asthe train leaves the block the electro-magnet O is energized and attracts the armature O, causing the lever N to turn and close the lend of the pipe l by contact of the washer N5 therewith. When the lever N is thus caused to turn, the lever l-I will be released and caused, by the weight I, to assume a horizontal position and be retained in such position by engagement of the stop l with the projection N1 of the lever N. As the lever ll turns on its pivot, the head l?l ol the rod P comes into contact with the valve Fand closes the top of the i tube (l and opens the lower end thereof, thus l o pen ing commun ieation between the air-chamber B and the cylinder D through the pipe c. Comin-esseri air being thus permitted to tlow into the cyliiuler above the pist-on E', said piston is caused to descend against. the weight of the comiter-halance R2. This operation will cause the visual signal to be turned within its shield through the medium of the chain operating upon the sprocket-wheel ou the shaft of thev signal-blade, thus signifying i safety. The rod E continues to descend until it reaches the stop f and the visual signal is within the shield. During the descent of the rod E its enlarged end comes into contact with the head P ot' the rod P and forces it oli the valve F, allowing the valve to rise and shut olf the air-supply from the cylinder. The contained air in the cylinder will exhaust itself' through the outlets e. \\"hen the piston-rod E is ai, its lowest position, the stop .l ot' the piston-rod will have passed the pivoted lever or stop J, and will be held thereby against upward movement until the magnets are again demagnetized by the short-circuiting of their battery by a train entering the block, and the parts operate as above described.

Should the valve Ii1 fail to open to permit the air from the cylinder D to escape through the pipe c, or the piston-rod E fail to push the head of the rod P otl said valve, or the piston E fail to uncover the exhausts e, the air in the cylinder will be permitted to exhaust through the pipel, the end of said pipe being opened bythe removal therefrom of the washer N, in the manner hereinbefore explained. It will therefore be seen that bythe employment ot this pipe l and means for opening and closing the free end of the saine the exhaust ot' air from the cylinder to permit the piston to rise when the signal is to be set at dangei is rendered doubly certain.

Slight changes might be made in the constructive details of our invention without departing from the spirit thereof; hence we do not wish to limit ourselves to the exact details of construction herein set forth; but,

Having fully described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a signaling apparatus, the combination, with a cylinder and piston-rod, of a visual signal connected'with the latter, a lever pivoted in close proximity to the piston-rod, this lever having a pivoted stop to engage the piston-rod, and mechanism to automatically release the piston-rod, substantially as set forth.

2. In a signaling apparatus, the combination, with a cylinder, a piston, and piston-rod, of a signal-blade connected with the latter, a iiuidpressure supplypipe communicating with the cylinder, a lever pivoted in close proximity to the piston-rod, this lever having a pivoted stop to engage the piston-rod, and mechanism to automatically release the piston-rod, sul'istantially as set forth.

In a signaling apparatus, the combination, with a cylinder made in two parts, one of said parts being larger in mrcumference than the other, of a piston in the larger portion, a piston-rod secured to said piston and adapted to reciprocate in both sections of the y cylinder, a signal-blade connected with the piston-rod, a {luid-pressure inlet-pipe communicating with the cylinder, a lever pivoted in close proximity to the piston-rod, this lever having a pivoted stop to engage the pistonrod, and mechanism to automatically move the stop to release the piston-rod, substantially as set forth. y

Je. In a signaling apparatus, the combination, with a cylinder having inlet and outlet ports, of a piston and piston-rod, enlargements on the rod, a lever pivoted in close proximity to the piston-rod, this lever having a pivoted stop to engage one of said enlargements, a signal-blade connected with the piston-rod, and mechanism to automatically release the piston-rod to display the signal, substantially as set forth.

In a signaling apparatus, the combination, with a cylinder, and a piston and pistonrod, of a yoke or frame attached to the latter near its lower end and extending upwardly above the piston, a visual blade connected with the yoke, uuid-pressure inlet and outlet ports IIO IZO

communicating with the cylinder, a pivotcd stop to engage an enlargement on the pistonrod, and mechanism to automatically release said piston-rod and permit it and the yoke to i rise and cause the signal-blad e 1o be turned, substantially as set t'orth.

(j. In a signaling appa atus, the combination, with a cylinder having perforated bosses on its exterior, and a piston and piston-rod, ol' a yoke or frame pivoted to the piston-rod near its lower end and passing through the perforated bosses on the cylinder, a visual-signal blade, a sprocket-wheel on the shalt ot' said blade, a chain carrying a Weight at one end and connected atits opposite end to the yoke,

l enlargement on the end of the piston-rod to and mechanism 'for actuating said piston to operate the signal-blade, substantially as set forth.

7. In a signaling apparatus, the combination,with a structure, a fluid-reservoir therein, and a pump for forcing fluid into said reservoir, ot' a cylinder, apipe for connecting the reservoir with said cylinder, a valve in said pipe, a piston and piston-rod in the cylinder, a signal-blade connected with the piston-rod, and mechanism t'or operating the valve auto matically j ust beit'orc the downward n'iovement of the piston-rod to admit fluid to the cylinder, substantially as set forth.

8.l In a signaling apparatus, the combination, with a fluid-reservoir, of a cylinder, a

` lever, and a Washer carried by said lever and pipe connecting the reservoir and cylinder, a

valve in said pipe, a piston and piston-rod in 1 the cylinder, a visual signal connected with the piston-rod, a pivoted lever, a depending rod pivoted thereto, and mechanism 'for opan enlargement on the piston-rod, a second lever, and an electro-magnet to actuate the erating the lever to cause the depending rod to strike the valve and open the same, substantially as set forth.

9. In a signaling apparatus, the combina- Q the reservoir and cylinder, a double valve l communicating with the pipe, said valve being held open at one end by a spring, a piv- 1 oted lever carrying a depending rod, and mechanism to turn said lever and cause the depending rod to strike the valve to close one l end and open the other, substantially as set l armature, an electro-magnet to attract the arforth.

IO. In a signaling apparatus, the combination, With a cylinder, a piston and piston-rod therein, and a signal-blade connected with l the latter, of a pivo'ted lever, a stop to engage an enlargement on the piston-rod, a T1ever to support one end of the first-mentioned lever and carrying an armature, and an electroi magnet to actuaire said' armature, substantially latter, of a lever carrying a counterbalance- Weight, a stop pivoted to the lever to engage armature, substantially asset forth.

12. In a signaling apparatus, the combination, with a cylinder, a piston and piston-rod therein, and a signal-blade connected with the pist'oirrod, ot a reservoir, a pipe connecting the cylinder and reservoir, a valve between the pipe and reservoir, a pivot-ed lever carrying a pivoted stop to engage an enlargement on the pistoirrod, a pendulum-rod pivoted to the lever and adapted to strike the valve, an

strike the pendulum-rod to disengage the latter from thc valve, a T-lever to support one end of the `First-mentioned lever and carrying an armature, and an electro-magnet to attract said armature and retain the T-lever in place, substantially asset forth. p

13. In a signaling apparatus, the combination, with a huid-reservoir, a cylinder, a piston and piston-rod therein, and a signal-blade connected with the piston-rod, of a pipe connecting the reservoir and cylinder, a valve between the pipe and reservoir, a pivoted lever carrying an armature, an electro-magnet to attract said armature, a pipe connected 'with the cylinder and terminating` above the adapted to close the end of the pipe, substantially as set forth.

I4. In a semaphore-signaling apparatus, the combination ,with the railroad-tracks, of a battery and an electro-magnet connected with said tracks at opposite ends of a block, a lever carrying an armature, a Huid-reservoir, a cylinder, a pipe conneeting'the reservoir and cylinder, a valve between the pipe and reservoir, a piston and piston-rod in the cylinder, a signal-blade connected with the piston-rod, and mechanism for operating the valve to admit liuid to the cylinder when the magnet is energized, substantially as set forth.

l5. In a signaling apparatus, the combina tion', with a iiuidcylinder, a piston and pistonrod therein, and a visual signal connected with said rod, of a vibrating lever having an mature, a pipe connected with the cylinder l and terminating near the armature, and mechanism carried by said lever and adapted to open and close the pipe, substantially as set. forth.

In testimony whereof we have signed this specification in the presence ot' two subscribing witnesses.

FREDERICK STI'IZEL. CHARLES 1WEIDTEDIL.

ll' i tnesses:

][. L. Kareem-i, C. M. S, HELEEL.

IOO

IIO

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