US578539A

US578539A - Trolley-support

Info

Publication number: US578539A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1897-03-09
Anticipated expiration: 1914-03-09

Description

' (No Model.)

B. BLAMEY. TROLLEY SUPPORT.

Patented Mar. 9, 1897.

WITNESSES UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD BLAMEY, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO EDGAR l/VHITMORE, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

TROLLEY-SU PPO RT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 578,539, dated March 9, 1897. Application filed December 4,1895. Serial No. 571,035. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EDWARD BLAMEY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trolley- Supports, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

This invention relates to trolleys for electric railways, and particularly to that class thereof which employ overhead conductors, in which the liability of the trolley-wheel to be detached therefrom is Very great by reason of the oscillation or jolting of the car, which frequently results in throwing the trolley-arm downward, thus disengaging the trolley-wheel from the conductor-wire and causing great inconvenience, especially on dark and stormy nights, when it is impossible to see the conductor-wire; and the object of the invention is to prevent the trolley-wheel from being detached from the conductor-wire or thrown therefrom or to reduce to a minimum the possibility of such disengagement of said parts; and with this and other objects in view the invention consists in the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

fication, A represents an ordinary conductorwire, such as is usually employed in railway systems of the class hereinbefore described, and B the trolley-arm, which is in practice connected with the car in the usual manner,

and said trolley-arm is provided with a main supporting frame or yoke 6, between the upper ends of which is pivoted the supplemental of which is directed downward, as shown at d, and provided with a downwardly-depending arm or projection (1 in which is preferably formed a hole or opening (1 and formed within the closed lower end of the frame or yoke D is an upwardly-directed tubular extension E, in which is placed a spring F.

Mounted within the upper end of the supplemental frame or yoke D is a spring-operated frame or yoke G, composed of side arms g, the lower ends of which are brought together at 9 and secured to or formed on the lower end thereof is a tube 9 which is adapted to inclose the tube E and to slide freely thereon.

, The separate sides of the frame or yoke D are provided near their upper ends with outwardly-directed transverse bows d, by means of which the pivotal connection between the frame or yoke D and the main frame or yoke is made through the agency of the pivotpins (1 and the inner or supplemental frame or yoke G or the sides 9 thereof are provided near their upper ends with outwardlydirected shoulders or projections H, which move in vertical slots h, formed in the sides of the frame or yoke D, and passing transversely through the frame or yoke D and the shoulders or projections H is a tubular shaft K, on which the trolley-wheel L is mounted. That portion of the tubular shaft K on which the trolley-Wheel is mounted is perforated, and said tubular shaft is adapted to be packed or filled with absorbing material of any preferred kind or class, and the ends of said shaft are closed by means of screw caps or plugs, and in operation the tubular shaft is filled with lubricating material which passes into the middle thereof and through the perforations, thus keeping the same properly lubricated at all times.

Mounted on the tubular shaft K at each side of the trolley-wheel L and extending normally therefrom in a rearward direction are arms M, having circular heads provided on their front edges with ratchet-teeth m On direction of the trolley-wheel. These plates form means of attachment for the rack-bars 0, one of which latter is attached to each plate in a position to engage the teeth in of the arms M. The object of these plates D is to form means for securing the rack-bars to move with the yoke D and at the same time to extend over the side g of the yoke G and bring said rack-bars in their proper positions.

The arms M may be formed in sections, if desired, or of a single piece, and the opera tion will be readily understood from the foregoing description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

The inner or supplemental yoke or frame G, in which the trolley-wheel is mounted, is supported normally by the spring F, and when the device is not in operation this spring forces said inner frame upwardly, so that the shoulders or projections H will strike against the upper walls h of the vertical slots 72, as will be readily understood, and in this position of the inner frame the arms M will be thrown upwardly, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2. It will be observed, however, that in said Fig. 2 the inner frame or yoke G is depressed to its lowest position, this being the position of the parts when the trolley is in operation and the trolley-wheel pressing upon the conductor-wire A, and in this position of said parts the arms M will project horizontally at each side of the trolley-wire, as shown in full lines in Fig. 1.

If during the operation of the device and by reason of the jolting or oscillation of the car caused by the passage of the same over a rough or uneven track the arm B should be suddenly depressed, the tendency would be to throw down the trolley-wheel and disconnect the same from the conductor-wire; but with my improvement this result would be prevented by means of the spring-operated inner frame or yoke which carries the trolleywheel and the arms M, said frame being thrown upward at such times by the spring F, and the arms M being also thrown upward into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, in which position they would inclose the wire A, as clearly shown in said figure, and hold the same in line with the trolleywheel or the trolley-wheel in line therewith, and the latter would be returned to its proper position in contact with the conductor-wire by means of the arm. B and the spring F.

In the operation of the device the yoke or frame D hangs in the position shown in Fig. 2:, and this is the proper position thereof, and I may also connect with the lower end thereof at d a weight which would assist in holding said frame in said position.

The space between the guide arms or rods M and the frame thereof is such as to guide the trolley-wheel to the proper position on the conductor-wire, although the trolley-wheel may have been thrown sidewise therefrom or out of a direct line therewith, and the effect of the use of these guide arms or rods is such as to retain the trolley-wheel in proper contact with the conductor-wire at all times regardless of the condition of the road or track or the movement of the car thereon. It will also be observed that when the trolley-wheel is in its lowest position, as shown in Fig. 2, it projects a suitable distance above the top of the frames bywhich it is supported, and by this arrangement Iprovide means whereby the trolley-wheel is enabled to cross switches or cross-lines of conductor-wires, as shown at P in Fig. 1, and I also connect the main outer yoke or frame with the trolley-arm by means of a swivel joint or coupling, as shown at R, which permits of the turning of the trolleysupport on the trolley-arm, so that said device maybe operated in any direction, and, as will be seen on referring to the drawings, the trolley-frame is supported in such a manner that it maintains at all times the same relative position without regard to the angle of the trolley-arm, which in practice is variable, thus keeping the guide rods or arms M entirely out the Way of any obstruction caused by cross-connections or otherwise.

It is evident that changes in and modifications of the construction herein described may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention or sacrificing its ad vantages, and I therefore reserve the right to make all such alterations therein and modifications thereof as fairly come within the scope of the invention.

Having fully described my invention, its construction and operation, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. The combination with a trolley-arm, of a main frame or yoke connected therewith, the sides of which are directed upwardly, a supplemental frame or yoke pivotally connected with the upper end thereof, the sides of which are directed upwardly, and a springsupported frame or yoke mounted and free to slide therein, in the upper end of which is mounted a trolley-wheel, substantially as shown and described. I

2. The combination with a trolley-arm, of a main frame or yoke connected therewith, the sides of which are directed upwardly, a supplemental frame or yoke pivotally connected with the upper end thereof, the sides of which are directed upwardly, and a springsupported frame or yoke mounted and free to slide therein, in the upper end of which is mounted a trolley-wheel, and guide arms. or rods mounted on the shaft. on which the trolley-wheel is mounted and means whereby they may be automatically raised or lowered, substantially as shown and described.

3. The combination with a trolley-arm, of a main frame or yoke connected therewith, the sides of which are directed upwardly, a supplemental frame or yoke pivotally connected with the upper end thereof, the sides of which are directed upwardly, and a springsupported frame or yoke mounted and free to slide therein, in the upper end of which is mounted a trolley-wheel, and guide arms or rods mounted on the shaft on which the trolley-wheel is mounted, and means whereby they may be automatically raised or lowered, and the shaft on which the trolley-Wheel is mounted being perforated and provided with a packing or filling of absorbing material, substantially as shown and described.

4. In a trolley-support, the combination with a trolley-arm, of a main frame or yoke connected therewith by means of a swivel joint or coupling, a supplemental frame or yoke pivotally suspended therein, a springsupported frame or yoke mounted in said supplemental frame or yoke, and provided at its upper end with shoulders or projections which are free to slide in Vertical slots formed therein, a trolley-wheel mounted on a shaft which extends through said spring-supported frame or yoke, and guide arms or rods provided with heads which are mounted on said shaft each side of said trolley-wheel, and means whereby the same may be automatically raised or lowered, substantially as shown and described.

5. The combination with a trolley-arm, of a frame or yoke which is. connected therewith a frame or yoke which is connected therewith by means of a swivel joint or coupling, and in which is mounted a supplemental frame or yoke, Within which is mounted a spring-supported sliding or depressible frame or yoke, in which is mounted a trolley-wheel, and guide arms or rods mounted at each side of said trolley-wheel, and means for raising and I lowering the same, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name, in'presence of the subscribing witnesses, this 30th day of November, 1895.

EDWARD BLAMEYQ Witnesses:

G. GERsT, M. A. KNOWLES.