US820539A - Railway. - Google Patents

Description

N0. 820,539v PATENTED MAY l5, 1906.

l A H WOOD l RAILWAY.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. I1. 1905.

WW1/resaca NTED STAT ES PATENT OFFICE.

RAILWAY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. May 15, 1906.

Application filed September 11, 1905. Serial No. 277,980.

' To all whom, t 711/601/ concern:

Be it known that I, ALPHEUs H. Woon, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ann Arbor, in the county of Washtenaw and State of Michigan, have invented new and useful- Improvements in Railways, of which the following is a speoiiication.

My invention pertains to railways; and it contemplates the provision in a railway of simple and reliable obstacle-controlled means for actuating an electric switch on a car with a view of automatically putting in or out of operation an electromechanical device also located on the car.

With the foregoing in mind the invention will be fully understood from the following description and claims when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a view illustrating a railway and a car equipped with the elements constituting the present and preferred embodiment of my invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical section of the car mechanism. Fig` 3 is an enlarged horizontal section taken in the plane indicated by the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical section taken at right angles to Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a detail view illustrating the side of the switch-body remote from the vertical rectilinearly-movable bar of the car mechanism.

Similar letters designate corresponding parts in all of the views of the drawings, referring to which- A is a railway.

B is a car, which may be a passenger-coach motor-car, or locomotive, and C is a fixed obstaole or trip. This iixed obstacle or trip is preferably a metallic block inclined longitudinally in opposite directions from its middle and is preferably arranged midway between the rails of the railway and fastened to the road-bed or its superstructure. It should be solid in practice in order to prevent wagons from breaking it down and sufliciently long to afford gradual inclines.

D is the car mechanism of my improvements, which is preferably carried by the truck of the car at a point midway between the rails, so as to assure the said mechanism being actuated by the obstacle or trip C irrespective of the direction in which the oar is moving.

The car mechanism D is best shown in Figs. 2 to 5 and is made up of a suitable casing a; a vertically movable foot-block b, snugly occupying an opening c in the bottom of the casing, so as to exclude dust and dirt from the interior thereof, and having its lower end, by preference, beveled in opposite directions, as indicated by d; a vertically-movable bar c, disposed in suitable guides f in the casing and fixed to or formed integral with the foot-block b; a coiled spring g, surrounding the bar e and connected at one end to the said bar and at its opposite end to one of the guides f, whereby it is placed under tension when the bar is raised, and hence operates when the bar is released to return the same to and hold it in the normal position illustrated; a pendent dog h, pivoted in the upper slotted portion e of the bar e and having a lateral armi at an intermediate point of its length and also having a lower end portion 7c, arranged to bring up against a stop Zin the slotted portion of the bar; a basket-wheel m, the crossbars n of which are arranged to be engaged by the arm rof the dog h; a s ur-gear ln,fixed with respect to one side of t e basket-wheel; a pawl p, pivotally connected to the casing and arranged to normally engage the spurgear, so as to hold the basket-wheelm against retrograde movement, and an electric switch 1, arranged at the opposite side of the basketwheel m with reference to the spur-gear n. The said switch 1^ is best shown in Figs. 3 and 5 of the drawings, and it comprises a rotary lever t, xed to one of the trunnions of the basket-wheel m and electrically connected with a binding-post u and a body o, carrying the said binding-post. In addition to the binding-post u the body e is provided with one or more, preferably two, other posts w The three binding-posts u, w, and Qc are ar-` ranged at one-side of the body'v and are extended transversely through the body, as shown. At the side of the body e adjacent to the lever t the posts w and are provided with contact-pieces w and x. .Intermediate of the contact-pieces w and are contactpieces w2 and r2. These contact-pieces w2 and x2 are carried by posts which extend through the body c, and the posts of the contact-pieces to2 are electrically connected. by metallic medium, preferably a copper plate y, with the post wof the contact-piece cli/while the posts of the contact-pieces x2 are electrically connected by metallic medium, preferably a copper plate 2, with the post of the contact-piece The posta is designed for IOO the connection of a main wire afi. e, a wire for supplying current to an electro mechanical device (not illustrated)-while the posts w are designed for the connection of shunt-wires 1f. It will thus be seen that when the switchlever t is in engagement with one of the contact-pieces w, to2, x', or 002 the current will pass from the main wire a to one or the other of the shunt-wires b, and the electromechanical device will be supplied with current and actuated; also, that during the rotation of the lever t the main wire a will be electrically connected first with one and then with the other of the shunt-wires b. The electromechanical device will be actuated while the lever t is in engagement with one of the contacts mentioned until it is stopped by a switch, which it automatically operates, or any other suitable means. The said electromechanical device will then remain idle until the lever t is moved to the next contact-piece, when it will again be set in motion and will operate for a predetermined time.

In the practical operation of my improvements it will be observed that as the car moves along and the foot-block b engages the fixed obstacle C the foot-block and the bar e will be forced upwardly against the action of the spring g, while the arm i of the dog h will ride upwardly past one of the bars of the basket-wheel and assume a position above the said bar. The said upward movement of the bar e and dog h is an idle movement; but when the obstacle C permits the spring g to move the bar e downwardly the arm of the do will turn the basket-wheel through a partiaI revolution or sufficiently far to carry the switch-lever t from one of the contact-pieces on the switch-body to another contact-piece thereon for the purpose before described.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that my improvements may be used to advantage for automatically controlling electromotors employed to operate station-indicators and the like also, that the improvements may be utilized to advantage in controlling various electromechanical devices appurtenant to a car or a train of cars. It will further beapparent that my improvements are reliable in operation and are well adapted to withstand the shock and jar to which car devices are ordinarily subjected.

The term car as herein employed isintended to comprehend a locomotive as well as a passenger or other car.

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

1. In a railway, a fixed obstacle, in combination with car mechanism comprising a vertical rectilinearly-movable bar arranged to be engaged and raised by the obstacle, an electric switch having a lever, and a connection between the bar and the lever for moving the latter by the former.

2. In a railway, a fixed obstacle, in combination with car mechanism comprising an electric switch having a circular series of contact-pieces and a rotary lever arranged to sweep over the contact-pieces, a vertical, rectilinearly-movable bar arranged to be engaged and raised by the obstacle, a gearwheel lixed with respect to the lever of the switch, and a dog carried by the bar and arranged on one movement thereof to turn the gear-Wheel through a partial revolution.

3. In a railway, a fixed obstacle, in combination with car mechanism comprising an electric switch, a vertical, rectilinearly-movable bar arranged to be engaged and raised by the obstacle, and a connection between the switch and the bar for operating the former by the latter incident to the movement of the bar in one direction.

4. In a railway, a fixed obstacle, in combination with car mechanism comprising a vertical, rectilinearly-movable bar arranged to be engaged and raised by the obstacle, means for moving said bar downwardly when the same is released from the obstacle, an electric switch having a circular series of contactpieces and aIso having a rotary lever arranged to sweep over and engage the contactpieces, a basket-wheel fixed to and arranged to move with the said lever, means for preventing retrograde movement of the said wheel, and a pendent dog-carried by the vertical bar and having a lateral arm` arranged to impart movement to thebasket-wheel on the downward movement of the bar and also having a lower end portion arranged'to bring up against a stop on tlie'bar.

In testimony whereoi'I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribingv witnesses.

ALPHEUS H. WOOD.

Witnesses:

H. A. GRIGGs, N. M. Woon.

TOO

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