US764264A - Railway-switch. - Google Patents

Description

No. 764,264. PATENTED JULY 5, 1904. J. E. SWONSONx RAILWAY SWITCH.

APPLICATION TILED JUNE 3, 1903. NO MODEL. 2 SHBB8-SHEET 1 Wham 1mm; yam

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No. 764,264. PATENTED JULY 5, 1904.

J. E. SWONSON.

RAILWAY SWITCH.

APPLIGATION FILED JUNE 3, 1903.

no MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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Patented July 5, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN E. SWONSON, OF DES MOINES, IOWA.

RAILWAY-SWITCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 764,264, dated July 5, 1904.

Application filed June 3,1903- SerialN-159,869- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JOHN E. SwoNsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Des Moines, in the county of Polk and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Railway-Switches, of which the following is a specification.

The objects of my invention are to provide simple, durable, and inexpensive means by which the movable switch-points of railwayswitches may be set to position by an operator on a car approaching the switch by means of an electric current taken from a trolley-Wire adjacent to the car.

A further object is to provide improved means for connecting the electromagnet with the switch, whereby the maximum efliciency of the electric current is utilized in operating the switch-point; and, further, in this connection it is my object to provide a device of this class in which the only movable part connected with the'track or stationed in the road-bed in any manner is the movable switch-point itself. My invention consists in certain details in the construction, arrangement, and combination of the various parts of the device whereby theobjects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more'fully set forth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 shows a side elevation of a railway-car mounted upon a track and provided with my improved switch-operating device.

.Fig. 2 is atop or plan View of a railway-switch having a movable switch-point and showing the electromagnet in position relative thereto. Fig. 3 shows a detail sectional view on the indicated line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 1 shows a diagram illustrating the arrangement of the electrical appliances used in operating the switch- Fig. 5 shows a detail perspective view of a part of the trolleywire, the trolley in engagement with the wire,

and the circuit-establishing devices for oper atin'g the switch connected with the trolleywire and the trolley; and Fig. 6 shows a dctail view of a modified form ofmeans for establishing an electriccurrent from a car to a wire 1n the road-bed.

Reierrmg to the accompanying drawings, 1

.have used the reference-numeral 10 to indicate the car proper mounted upon the railway-track rails 11.

The numeral 12 is used to indicate apole 01 ortact-points 17. The said supporting-wire 15 is attached to an insulating-block 18, fixed to the trolley-wire. Connected with each of the contact-points 17 is an electrical conductor 19, and these conductors are designed to carry an electric current to the electromagnet placed in the road-bed and hereinafter described. The trolley-pole 12 is electrically connected with a condoctor 20, leading to a movable electric switch 21, carried by the car. Secured to the sides of the trolley-pole 12 are the sliding contact-arms 22, insulated from the trolley-pole by the insulators 23. These arms are so positioned relative to the trolley-pole and the contact points 17 that they will both slidingly engage the contact-points 17 as the car passes under the said contact-points 17. Connected with the sliding contact-arms 22 are the electrical conductors 24. These conductors are connected to the contact-points 25, which points are adjacent to the switch-lever 21 and so ar ranged that said switch-lever may be placed in position to connect the conductor 20 with either one of the contact-points 25, so that a current may be established from the trolleywire through the trolley-pole 12, the conductor 20, the switch-lever 21, either one of the contact-points 25, and from thence through either one of the conductors 24:, the sliding contact-arms 23, the stationary contact-points 17 and the conductors 19. Hence it is obvious that by a movement of the switch-lever 21 the devices carried by'the car may be so set that when a car passes the switch-points 17 a current from the trolley-wire may be passed through either one of the conductors 19.

Referring to Fig. 2 of the drawings, the reference-numeral 26 indicates the straight branch of a railway-switch, and 27 the curved branch thereof. Between these branches is the movable switch-point 28, all of ordinary construction. Adjacent to the track-rail 26 is an electromagnet 29, the body portion of which is under the track-rail 26. This electromagnet 29 is connected with one of the conductor-wires 19 and is grounded at 30, as shown in Fig. 4. Adjacent to the track-rail 27 is a similar electromagnet 31, connected with the other conductor 19 and grounded at 32. Each of these magnets is of the class having two coils and their opposite poles being both at the upper ends thereof, said coils being arranged side by side and the poles projecting upwardly at 33 and then horizontally through notches provided for them in the track-rails, said poles of each magnet being inclined toward each other, as shown in Fig. 2, and surrounding each pole is anon-magnetic protector 34:, which may be made of brass and which incloses the end portion of the pole except at its top and end. The top of the pole that passes through the thread portion of the rail is flush with the top of the rail. In use with this portion of my invention and assuming that a current is established through the electromagnet 29 it is obvious that the poles of said magnet are as near as may be possible to the switch-point 28, and the force of said magnet will be utilized in drawing the switchpoint 28 toward it, and thereby setting the switch-point in position to turn the car toward the curved branch of the track, and when a current is established through the other electromagnet it sets the switch to position to direct a car toward the straight branch. Obviously by fixing all of the parts of the switchpoint-operating mechanism in position in the road-bed I have provided a switch-operating means that is not likely to get out of repair and which exerts all of the efficiency of the electromagnet in a direct manner upon the movable switch-point itself.

In practical use the operator on a car approaching a switch need only set the switchlever 21, carried by the car, to position in engagement with one of the contact-points 25.

- Then when the car reaches a position where current will be passed through the electromagnet only for the short period oftime in which the arms 22 are in engagement with the points 17, so that the electric current passing through the trolley-wire is diverted and used for moving the switch-point for only a very short time, and, furthermore, the electromagnets can be thoroughly incased and protected from moisture, because there are no movable parts in any way connected therewith except the movable switch-rail itself.

In the modified form shown in Fig. 6 I have illustrated a device for transmitting an electric current from a car to a conductor in the road-bed, as follows: The numeral 35 indicates a wire connected with the car. This wire is attached to a yielding plate 36 on the under surface of the car, said plate being designed to engage a rounded metallic block 37 in the road-bed contained in an insulator 38, said block being connected with a wire 39. Obviously when a car bearing a yielding contact-plate 36 passes one of the blocks 37 electrical communications will be had between the wires 35 and 39 during the time the contactplate is in engagement with the block 37 It is readily seen how this modification may be applied to operate my improved switch by assuming that the wire 35 is the same as one of the wires 24:, carried by the car, and the wire 39 is the same as one of the wires 19 in the road-bed. 4

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

1. The combination with a trolley-wire and an electric-railway car, of a railway-switch having a movable switch-point, an electromagnet having a pole projecting horizontally through a part of the switch with its end adjacent to the movable switch-point and its top flush with the top of the tread portion through which it is passed, a non-magnetic protector surrounding the bottom and sides of the pole where it passes through the tread portion and means carried by the car for transmitting an electric current from the trolley-wire to the electromagnet.

2. The combination with a switch having a movable switch-point, of an electromagnet having a pole projecting horizontally through a part of the switch with its end adjacent to the movable switch-point and its top flush with the top of the tread portion through which it is passed, and a non-magnetic protector surrounding the bottom and sides of the pole where it passes through the tread portion, for the purposes stated. I

3. The combination with a railway-switch having two stationary tread portions side by side, and a movable switch-point between poles passed through notches in the tread portions with their ends adjacent to the switch- I tions with their ends adjacent to the switch point and their tops flush with the tops of the tread portions, and non-magnetic protectors surrounding the sides and bottom of each pole and holding it out of contact with the tread portions.

4:. The combination with a railway-switch having two stationary tread portions side by side, and a movable switch point between them, of two electromagnets, each having two poles passed through notches in the tread porpoint and their tops flush with the tops of the tread portions, non-magnetic protectors surrounding the sides and bottom of each pole and holding .it out of contact with the tread portion, the poles passing through each tread portion being inclined toward each other.

JOHN E. SWONSON. Witnesses:

J. RALPH ORWIG, SIDNEY F. OI-IRIsTY.

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