US664579A - Switch for railways. - Google Patents

Description

No. 664.579. Patented Dec. 25, |90'.

F. S. PEARSUN.

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(Appumion med Max- 14, 1599.) (No Modal.) 2 SheetsSheet l.

EE? s N0. 664,579. v Patented Dec. 25, |900.-

v F. S. PEARSDN.

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(Application filed, Mar. 14, 1899.)

2 Sheei-Sheet 2.v

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

FRED S. PEARSON, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

SWITCH FoR RAILWAYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 664,579, dated December 25, 1900.

Application filed March 14, 1899. Serial No. 708,994. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRED S. PEARSON, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Boston, county of Suffolk, State o'f Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Switches forRailways, of which the following is aspeciiication.

This invention is an improvement in automatic switches for` street-railways, and has special reference to switches for use on rail# ways over which motor-cars are run or cars propelled by other means than horses; and this improvement has for its object a switch that can be operated or controlled wholly by the car passing over the road.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating myimprovement, Figure l isatop view,partly in section, of asection of the road containing the improvement, showing the switch-tongue and switch mechanism. Fig. 2 is a transverse section of the same through the plane indicated by the line 0c as, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a detail showing a vertical section at y y, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical section of the road through the plane indicated by the line z z, Fig. l, showing the switch-operating mechanism iu a position midway between its two eXtreme positions and the wheel of the car depressing the actuator in the rail. Figs. 5 and 6 are similar views showing, respectively, the switch-operating mechanism in its extreme opposite positions when the switch is open and closed; and Fig. 7 is a detail.

In this improvement the switch is thrown from one posit-ion to the other or opened or closed, as desired, by the Wheel of thecar passing over the car-rail and without stopping the car or in any way adecting its running. A

The switch-operating mechanism is located in a pit or excavation beneath the road-bed and is moved or operated by an actuator situated in the car-rail and depressed by the carwheel as the latter passes along the track. In the construction shown in the drawings this actuator consists of a lever A, pivoted at one end in au elongated opening in the rail in such manner that the other or free end can be raised above the surface of the rail in position to be depressed by the carwheel passing over it. From the free or movable end a of the lever depends a post B,

On opposite sides of the post B in the pit are two arms E F, mounted on suitable shafts or bearings C and D, so as to extend toward each other and move up and down in a vertical plane.

downward and in a direction substantially at right angles to the arms E and F.Y The ends of these arms G and H are connected by the link or tie-rod I, whereby these arms, and henceV the arms E and F, mounted on their respec- 0n the same shafts C and D areother arms G and H, respectively, extending Y tive shafts, are caused to move together. TheA arms E and F are thus connected with one another and, as will be seen by reference to Figs.4, 5, and 6, always move in opposite directions.v As one arm E swings upward the other arm F will swing downward, and vice versa.,

On the shaft C is mounted a third arm K in such position as to swing back and forth as the shaft turns. To the end of this arm K is connected the rocking rod L, the other end of which is attached to the switch-tongue, and hence as the arm K swings back and forth with the shaft it turns the switch tongue in opposite directions to open and close the switch. By reference to Figs. 5 and Git will .be seen that as the arm E turns downward it swings the arm K so as to turn the switch in one direction, and as the arm F turns downward it swings the arm K in position to re verse the switch or turn it in the other direction. The downward movement of the arms E and F thus swings the arm K in opposite directions and reverses the position of the switch or opens and closes the latter. The arms E and F are turned downward to thus operate the switch by engagement with the sliding post B in the following manner: On the ends of these arms E and F, respectively, are loosely mounted pawls M and N, so constructed and pivoted to' their respective arms that when free to turn their upper ends will swing inward and rest against the sides of IOO the post B. The bottoms of these pawls are formed with the projections m and frt, so constructed as to come in contact with and rest upon the platform B when the arms F. and F swing downward. As will be seen from the drawings, as these projections strike against the platform the upper ends of the pawls are thrown outwardand away from the kpost B.

On the sides of the post B against which the pawls rest are shoulders or projections e and f, so placed that when the post is in its upward position-that is, when it has been lifted up by the actuator-the shoulder willV be immediately above the end of the uppermost pawl or the pawl on that arm, E or F, which is turned upward,.as is shown in Fig. 4 and as will be understood from Figs. 5 and 6. 1f ,now when the pawl and shoulder are thus engaged the post is pushed down, the shoulder pressing on the end of the pawl will turn the arm E or F connected with it downward, and thus swing the arm K in either direction, as it may be, to reverse the switch. As the arms E and F are connected together, one of them will be raised as the other is turned down, and to prevent the pawl of the upwardmoving arm, which is thus freed from contact with the platform, from swinging inward and engaging with the shoulder on the post, and

thereby interfering with the movement of the arms and the operation of the mechanism, the pawl is held away from the side of the post as it moves up by the latches O and P. These latches are mounted on the standard Q, Fig. 7., erected on the platform B, in posit-ion to engage with the ends of the pawls. The latches are pivoted to the standard so they can swing outward, but are prevented from swinging inward toward each other by the studs q q. On the ends of the pawls are pins m and n', and on the ends of the latches are cam-shaped projections 0 and p, arranged to engage with the pins, whereby the pawl in its upward movement is held out away from the side of the vpost until its engagement with the latter is required. 'v

The operation of the above mechanism is yas follows: In Fig. 6 the parts of the mechanism'are shown in their respective positions when the switch is open and the actuator down. As will be seen, the armE is raised, with the end of its pawl M lifted above the end of the latch O and resting on the side of the shoulder e on the post B, while the arm F is turned down with the projection fn. of its pawl N resting'on the platform B' and the upper end of the pawl thrown outward away from contact with the side of the post. i If now it is desired to reverse the switch, the actuator A is raised, as indicated by dotted lines, and the post B drawn up. As will be understood from Fig. 6 and as is shown in Fig. 4:, the end of the pawlM will now drop below the shoulder e in position to engage with the latter, and as the actuator is depressed by the` ca'r wheel, as shown, and the post B thus pushed down the shoulder will'press against the end ofthe pawl as the post descends and swing the arm E downward, the pin m on the pawl passing back of the cam projection o on the latch O. As the arm E swings downward it turns the shaft C and swings the arm K, mounted on the latter, to one side in position to slide the rocking rod L and reverse the switch-tongue and close the switch. The arm E continues to descend with the post until the projection m on the bottom of the pawl M strikes against the platform B', when the upper end ofthe pawl will be thrown out away from the side of the post and from engagement with the shoulder e, as in Fig. 5, the pin m' having passed below the cam projection o on the latch. Since the arms Er and F are connected together by the arms G and H and rod I, as the arm E is thus pushed downward by the descent of the post the opposite arm F will be swung upward and its pawl N lifted from the platform B and be free to turn. By referring to Figs. 4 and 6 it vwill be seen that as the pawl N moves upward with the arm F the pin 'a' on the end of the pawl slides along the outside of the cam projection p on the latch P and yholds the pawl from swinging inward and coming under the shoulderfon this side of the post and interfering with the descent of the latter. The pin continues to move along the projection on the latch and keeps the pawl out of engagement with the shoulder as the pawl is raised until the end of the pawl is above the bottom of the shoulder and is in its upward position resting on the side of the shoulder f, as in Fig. 5. The post is nowall the way down, the wheel having passed over the actuator, and the parts of the mechanism in the position shown in Fig. 5, with the switch reversed or closed. As seen, the arm E is now down, with the bottom fm of its pawl M resting on the platform B and the upper end of the pawl thrown back from the post and out of engagement with the shoulder e, and the arm Fraised, with its pawl N resting against vthe side of the post in position to drop under and engage with the shoulder fwhen the post is raised. To reverse the switch again, the actuator is raised and the post B lifted up, as before. The pawl N now comes under and engages with the shoulderf and as the post descends swings the arm4 F downward and turns the shaft D. This shaft in turning by means of the arm H, rod I, and arm G on the shaft C turns the latter shaft and swings the arm K back in position, as shown in Fig. 6, to slide the rod L so as to reverse or open the switch. As before, whenthe one arm F swings down the other arm is turned upward and the pawl M raised, the pin lm.' on its upper end sliding along the outside of the cam projection o on the latch O and keeping the pawl from engagement'with' the shoulder e, as was the case with the pawl N on the arm `F. The parts of the mechanism are thus IOO IIO

sition. It will thus be seen that every time the post B is made to descend it engages with one or the other of the arms E or F, according as to whether the switch is already open or closed and the one or the other arm is raised, and turning this arm downward swings the arm K in position to reverse the switch, and hence to change the switch from an open to a closed or a closed to an open position it is only necessary to raise the post B by lifting the actuator and then push the post down by depressing the actuator by the car-wheel, when the switch will be reversed.

The engagement of the rocking rod Lwith the switch is shown in Figs. 1 and 3. The rocking rod, as shown, moves in a tube or casing L and is connected at its farther end to an arm l, mounted on a shaft R, turning in bearings r r, Fig. 3. Mounted on the other end of this shaft in a direction substantially at right angles to the arm Z is an arm s, the position of the arms being such that as the arm l is moved back and forth the arm s will be raised or lowered. To the arm s is connected a rod t t, the other end of which is at- -tached to the switch-tongue T. As will be understood from the drawings, as the rocking rod L is moved back and forth by the arm K it turns the shaft R and by means of the arm s and rod z5 t slides the switch-tongue in an open or closed position.

It will be evident, as far as the operation of the switch mechanism is concerned, that the actuator A in the rail may be lifted by any suitable mechanism, it being only necessary to raise the movable end a of the actuator in position to be depressed by the carwheel.v When used in connection with what are termed electric roadsthat is, roads in which the cars are propelled by electric motors-the actuator may be raised by an electromagnet. The magnet is placed on the under side of the car in front ofthe wheel, as shown at V, Fig. 4, and when it is desired to operate the switch mechanism to reverse the switch the electric fluid is turnedlon the magnet as the car approaches the actuator,

and when over the latter the magnet will attract and lift up the end of the actuator, and thus raise the post and set the mechanism ready to be operated' by the depression of the actuator by the car-wheel.

On the actuator is a counterpoise-weight W, which serves to balance the weight of the post B and facilitate the movement of the actuator.

In the particular construction shown in the drawings the switch-operating mechanism is in du plicate-that is, there are two posts B with their connecting-arms E and F on each side of the pit, operated by actuators in each of the rails, whereby the wheels on each side of the car move the switch. In this construction, as will be seen, the shaft C, on which the arms E and Kare mounted,extends across the pit, and the two sets of mechanism are thereby made to move simultaneously in operating the switch'. For all practical purposes, however, this duplicate system is not required, a single set of mechanism operated by an actuator in one of the rails being sufficient to move the switch.

The method of operating or reversing the switch by this mechanism is as follows: As the motorman or driver on the car approaches the switch he observes whether it is turned in theproper direction, and if it is pays no attention to the switch mechanism, but allows his car to run over the rails in the direction desired. If, however, he observes that the switch is not turned in the proper directionthat is, if it is open and he desires it closed or closed and he requires it openbefore his car reaches the actuator A in the rail he turns the electricity into the magnet V, and as the front end of the car on which the magnet is placed passes over the actuator the magnet attracts and lifts up the latter in front of the car-wheel, and as the car passes along the wheel depresses the actuator, thus operating the mechanism and reversing the switch, whereby the latter is set in the proper direction before the car reaches it. It will be observed that the only action on the part of the motorman when the switch is to be reversed is to turn the electricity into the magnet, and the car as it passes along itself operates the mechanism and turns the switch, and that it is not necessary to stop the car or interfere in the least with its progress.V

What I claim is- 1. In a railroad-switch, in combination, an actuator located in the car-track and adapted to be raised by mechanism on the car, and afterward depressed by the car-wheel, a magnet on the car by which the actuator is raised, and mechanism connected with the actuator and with the switch and operated by the former, whereby when the actuator is depressed the switch is reversed, substantially as described.

2. In a railroad-switch, in combination, an actuator located in the car-track and capable of being raised by mechanism on the car and afterward depressed by the car-wheel, a vertically-sliding post B attached to and operated by the actuator, oscillating arms E and F arranged and adapted to engage alternately with the post, and mechanism connecting the arms with the switch, whereby as the post moves down it engages with either one of the arms and reverses the switch, substantially as described. i

3. In a railroad-switch, in combination, the actuator A located in the car-track and capable of being raised by mechanism on the car and afterward depressed, by the car-wheel; vertically-sliding post B, arms E, F connected together and adapted to engage alternately with the post, means whereby the disengaged arm is held from engagement with the post; mechanism connecting the arms with the switch, whereby as the post moves down it TIO engages with eithe1I one of the armsdand reverses the switch; and a magnet located on the oar by which the actuator is raised, substantialiy as described.

4. In a railroad-switch, in combination, the actuator A, located in the car-track; post B attached to and operated by the actuator; arms E and F connected together-and mounted on shafts C and vD and adapted to engage io alternately'with the post; means whereby the `disengaged 'arm is heid from engagement with the post; arm K mounted on and movingwith the shaft C; mechanism connecting the arm K with switch; and the magnetV on the car and adapted to raise the actuator, substan- I5 tialy as described.

w FRED s. PEARSON.

Witnesses:

WALTER P. PLUMMER, CLEMENT M. CUMMING.

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