US782589A - Trolley. - Google Patents

Description

PTENTED FEB. 14, 1905.

B. WILLIAMS'.

TROLLEY.

APPLICATION IILIm JUNI: 17,1904.

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Patented February 14, 1905;

UNITED STATES rPATENT OFFICE.

BENJAMIN WILLIAMS, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO, AssIGNOB OF ONE-HALF To w. F. VOLK, OF` ooLUMBUs, OHIO.

TROLLEY.

SPECIFICATION Yforming part of Letters Patent'No. 782,589, dated February 14, 1905.

' Appncmion iea June 17,1904.; serial 110.212,963. Y

,T0 all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN WILLIAMS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Trolleys, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to trolleys for electrically-propelled vehicles, particularly electric railroad-cars of the type in common use, and has for its particular object to provide means for maintaining a continuous electrical connection between the feed or trolley wire and the motor and lights `of the car when the direction of movement of said car is to be reversed, as at the terminals of the line, or in cases where it is necessary for some cause to stop a car and run it back over a section of track just passed over.

Accidentsresulting from collisions between moving cars and cars temporarily disconnected from the feed-wire, whereby it is impossible to quickly putA the latter into motion to avoid such collision are not unknown, and the necesley for reversing the movement of the car .without necessitating the `attendants passing outside of the car from one end thereof to the other, as now commonly practiced, thereby eliminating the danger to employees at present incident to shifting the trolley for revers` ing the movement of ears on bridges, trestles, embankments, and the like.

With these and other objects in view the present invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter more fully described, shown in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the appended claims,y l it being understood that changes in the form, proportion, size, and minor details may be made Within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention. i

1n the drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a railroad-car provided with `my improved trolley. Fig. 2 is a view of said trolley, certain parts being omittedfor clear- Yness of illustration. Figs. 3 and 4 show modi- `hold the trolley-poles Ain fixed positions.

` Like characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the views.

*Referring to the drawings, 1 represents a car of the type commonly in use on streetvrailroads providedat the top thereof with a trolley 2, which consists in the preferred embodiment of my invention of a vertical standard 3, strengthened by the diagonal brace 4, said .standard carrying at the upper end thereof and rotatably` mounted thereon a vertical rod 5, having hinged thereto, as shown, two trolley-poles 6 and 7, which poles are also hinged together at 17. Each pole is provided with trolley-wheels 8 of the usual form, journaled in the upper ends thereof for engagement with a feed or trolley Wire 9. A spring connected with the poles 6 and 7 tends to bring the, same together and to urge each into contact with the wire 9.

Carried by the poles 6 and 7 arethe curved rack-arms 11 and 12, which pass downward through openings 13 and 14C in the top of the car andare so arranged as to move in the space between the top 15 of the car and the ceiling 16 of the car interior: To permit of the movement of the rack-arms'll and 12 in the space mentioned, the. arms conform in sha-pe approximately to arcs of circles and the arm 12 is rigidly attached to the pole 7 at a distance from the hinge 17 approximately equal to the radius of the aro corresponding to the curved arm 12. The arm 11 is pivoted to the pole 6 at a point relatively near the hinge 17, whereby when the pole 6 is lowered the arm 11 will move in the space between the top of the car and the ceiling of the interior thereof.

To permit of the angular movements of the trolley-poles with reference to the longitudinal axis of the car, which movement is necessary when the car passes around curves and in all cases where the feed-wire is not exactly over the center of the car, the openings 18 and 14 in the car-top extend some distance transversely of the car. To accommodate the angular movement of the trolley mentioned, the diagonal brace 4 is provided with a yoke 25, through which the rack-arm 12 passes. The distance between the sides of said yoke is made suicient to permit the wheel 8, carried by the trolley-pole 7, to follow the feed-wire under all circumstances in the practical operation of the car.

To cover the openings 13 and 14 in the top of the car and prevent the passage of rain and dust therethrough, said openings are provided with guard- plates 26 and 27. The arms 11 and 12 move freely up and down in said guard-plates, and the vlatter not being attached to the top of the car move transversely thereupon with the movement of the rackarms passing therethrough, effectually covering the openings 13 and 14 in every position of the poles 6 and 7.

Attached to the top 15 of the car, preferably on the under side of said top, are provided spring-actuated bolts 17, which are adapted to engage with the teeth on the curved arms 11 and 12. Connected with said bolts and serving to draw the same in opposition to the action of the springs carried thereby are cords 18, which terminate in handles 19 within convenient reach of an attendant standing on one of the platforms of said car. Pulleys 2O may be provided to facilitate the movement of the cords 18, if desired.

Attached to the poles 6 and 7 near the upper ends thereof are cords or ropes 21 to withdraw the trolley-wheels 8 from engagement with the wire 9. These cords may pass down over the edges of the car-roof or through openings 22 in the top of the car and may terminate in handles 23 within convenient reach of an attendant standing upon one of the platforms.

The operation of my improved trolley is as follows: Vhen one trolley-wheel is in contact with the feed-wire and the movement of the car is to be reversed, the conductor or other attendant pulls upon the cord connected with the bolt which holds the other trolleypole out of engagement with the wire. The lowered pole will thereupon be drawn upward by the spring 10 into contact with the wire. The poles 6 and 7 being hinged together in angular alinement will each automatically engage the feed-wire upon being raised when the other pole engages said wire.

It is obvious that the rack-bars 11 and 12 may be provided with angular teeth, over which the ends of the spring-actuated bolts 17 will slip automatically when said arms are lowered, the bolts acting as ratchet-arms to hold the curvedarms against upward movement. (See Fig. 4.) It is also obvious that the teeth on the rack-arms 11 and 12need not extend entirely down to the lower ends thereof, but that the surface of said lower ends may be made smooth to facilitate the free up-anddown movement of the outer end of the trolley-poles where the elevation of the feedwire 9 is not uniform. (See Fig.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A trolley consisting of a standard carrying two trolley -poles, each capable of independent motion with reference to the other, a spring tending to draw said poles together and means adapted to secure said poles at any predetermined angle to each other and to the standard'.

2. A trolley consisting of a standard carrying two trolley-poles hinged together in angular alinement and each capable of independent motion with reference to the other and means adapted to secure said poles at any predetermined angle to each other or to the standrsaid arms to hold the poles at any predetermined angle to each other.

5. A trolley havingtwo trolley-poles hinged together in angular alinement, curved rackarms secured to and extending downward from said poles, means for engagement with said arms to hold the poles at any predetermined angle to each other.

6. A trolley consisting of a standard carry-l ing two trolley-poles hinged together in angular alinement, curved rack-arms attached to poles, means for engagement with said rackarms to hold the poles at any predetermined angle to each other, and means tending' to elevate the free ends of said poles.

7. The combination with an electric car, of a trolley consisting of a standard carrying two trolley-poles capable of independent motion with reference to each other, curved rack- IOO IlO

[O of said poles, means'for holding said poles in fixed positions, and means capable of being operated from the car-platforms for controlling said last mentioned holding means,

whereby either or both of the said trolleypoles may be brought into electrical connec- I5 tion with an'overhead feed-Wire.

BENJAMIN WILLIAMS. In presence of- A. L. PHELPS, W. L. MoRRoW.

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