US399732A - Electric-railway switch - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

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ELECTRIC RAILWAY SWITCH.

Patented Mar. 19, 1889.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE...

EDWARD BLAKE, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

ELECTRlC RAI LWAY SWITCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 399,732, dated March 19, 1889.

Application filed October 22, 1888.

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, EDWARD BLAKE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electrical-Railway Switches; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the inven tion, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to railway-switches on tracks where cars are propelled by electrical power, as hereinafter more fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claim.

The object of my invention isto provide a suitable means of operating the switch by electrical power as the car approaches the same, the controlling device being on the car and operated at some determined point 011 the track relative to the switch. A switch of the Variety known as a tongue-switch is used, in which a movable tongue on one or both of the rails directs the wheels of the car in one or the other direction, according to the position of the tongue. In my invention this tongue is rigidly attached to its central pivot, which pivot is extended downward through the base of the switch into a box below. On the lower end of this pivot is attached an arm in a similar manner, and this arm is provided at its free end with a curved metal bar or rod placed transversely to said arm, which may be acted 011 by one or more electric mag nets, or electric motors, or solenoids, suitably placed so as to move the arm to and fro, and therefore to move in a similar manner the tongue of the switch above.

To more fully understand my invention reference is had to the drawings and to the figures and letters of reference marked thereon, in which- Figure 1 represents a View in perspective of the switch device embedded in the roadway and beneath the rail. Fig. 2 represents a perspective view of a section of the forward platform of a car and a plan view of the switch and section of rail. Fig. 3 represents a side Serial No. 288,876. (No model.)

the switch-box. Figs. 4 and 5 represent modifications of the device.

Its construction and operation are as follows:

A represents the box; B, the solenoids; C, return-wire; 0, main leading-wire; D, trolley; E, platform of car; a,switch-pivot; 1), switchtongue; (3, arm attached to pivot; d, end of said arm; 6, armature attached to arm d; f f g g, circuit-wires; h h, contact-plates; it", metallic brushes; j j, circuit-wires; is, electric switch.

The box A containing the device is embedded beneath the rails, as seen at Fig. 1, two sides of said box being cut away to give a View of the interior. Placed within this box are the solenoids B B. The switch-pivot a (which is journaled in the box A) has rigidly attached to its upper end and outside of the box A the tongue I); also, rigidly attached to the pivot a, and within box A, is the arm 0. Attached to the extreme end (1 of said arm is the curved rod 6, which projects or extends both ways from arm 0 toward or partially into the two solenoids B B, so that each end of said rod forms an armature for one solenoid, and will be drawn toward or into it when the solenoid is electrically excited.

, The electrical connections of the solenoids are made as follows: One end of the circuit of each solenoid f f is connected directly to the return-wire O of the circuit from which the car derives its propelling-current, or is otherwise thoroughly grounded. The other two ends of the circuits g gone for each of the solenoids B B' are led to the two insulated contactplates h h, placed in such a position near the track that they may be touched by the two metallic brushes t z", projecting from the car, one brush for each of the said plates. These brushes are electrically connected by wires j j, through the car by wire a, to the other main leading-wire, O, by which the propelling-current is supplied, or to the service-wire therefrom to the car. The electrical switch It (see Fig. 2) is put in circuit, so that the current may be sent into one plate or the other by moving said switch, or may be entirely out off from the brushes, if so desired. The action is completed by allowing the current, by

means of this electrical switch 76, to pass from one main leading-wire into the car by means of the trolley D or other suitable device, thence through wire at and switch 70 into brush 5 t', corresponding contact plate, h, thence through the connecting-wire g and its corresponding solenoid, B, which will attract the armature (2 toward itself, and thus by means of the mechanism shown operate tongue 7) of the switch and bring it, as shown at Fig. 2, in contact with rail 0. The current then passes off into the other main leading or return wire, 0. To move switch-tongue b in the opposite direction, the electrical switch 70 is brought in contact with wirej, thence through brush 2" and its contact-plate h to the solenoid B. It is quite evident from this arrangement that the tongue 1) can be operated in either direction. The electrical impulse may, if so desired, be used to operate the tongue in one direction only, a weight or spring being used to move it in the opposite direction, as seen at Fig. 5, where the spring on is coiled around pivot a, one end attached to said pivot and the other end resting against pin 19. Longer contact-plates than those shown would be required to maintain the electrical current until the car had passed the switch, when the tongue I) would by the action of spring m re turn to its former position, and this arrangement would be necessary if the car following did not want to use the switch.

If the propelling-current is supplied from a storage-battery on the car, the brushes it" will of course be electrically connected with such battery. It is quite evident that the operating-lever or lower arm, 0, may be dispensed with, and the armature e of the solenoids BB may be attached or connected directly by arm Z, as shown at Fig. 4, with the switch-tongue b, (said view being through dotted line of Fig. 2,) or in any other suitable manner that would give the best results, and this in practice may be the preferred way. Itis also evident that any other form of electro-magnet or electromotor may be used in place of the solenoids B B to actuate the switch-tongue. Therefore I do not limit myself to any particular form of motor or magnet for this purpose.

Various changes might be suggested and carried out relative to the form of boX con taining the solenoids and mechanism operated by them. The exact position of the device in relation to the rail, whether one or both rails arethus equipped, the exact mechanical connection between the tongue and the solenoids, all these may be modified and some of the elements dispensed with or substituted for others without departing from the spirit of my invention.

The essential features of my device consist in the combination of a railway-switch actuated by electrical agency with means attached to the car, substantially as described, for operating the same, thus enabling the car-driver to electrically set the switch while the car is in motion.

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

The combination of a railway-switch which is actuated in both directions by an electromotive agency with electric conductors extending from such electro-motive agency to contact-makers set near the railway-track, a railway track and car, and means attached to the car for making connections through such contact-makers with said conductors, respectively, so as to complete an electric circuit through either of them at will, and "thereby to move the switch in either direction.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

EDWARD BLAKE.

Witnesses:

JAMES E. LEAcH, GEORGE T. CovERLY.

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