US870111A - Sand-box. - Google Patents

Description

PATENTED NOV. 5, 1907.

J. L. LEVY.

SAND BOX. APPLICATION rum) MAR. 2, 1907.

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No. 870,111. PATENTED NOV. 5, 1907.

J. L. LEVY I SAND BOX. APPLICATION PILEDMAR. 2, 1907- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH L. LEVY, OF NEW YORK, N.

PENNSYLVANIA.

Y., ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSINMENTS, TO THE J. G. BRILL COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA,

A CORPORATION OF SAND-BOX.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 5, 1907.

Application filed March 2, 1907. Serial No. 360,260.

To all whom it mag} concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH L. LEVY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sand-Boxes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to sand boxes used on railway cars, and is a type in which the valve is a swing gate valve adapted to swing on an axle, and to control the flow of sand.

The object of my improvements is to allow oi the use of a swing valve having a curved bottom made on a large are, and so that there will be no leak of the sand when the valve is closed.

In the drawings forming part of this application, Figure 1 is a vertical section of myimpr'oved sandbox. Fig. 2 is a similar view taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the box. Fig. 4 is a plan view, and Fig. 5 is a perspective, view of the gate valve.

In the drawings of this application, I have illustrated a complete sand box with its operating mechanism, althrough my invention deals more particularly with the valve and its corresponding parts.

The box consist primarily of an upper reservoir 1 which is provided with an inturned bottom 2, having bolts 3 passing through the latter and securing it to the floor 4 of a railway car, and is adapted to be filled with a supply of sand ready for use. This reservoir is adapted to surround an opening in the floor of the car, through which the sand is fed into a hopper 5, the bottom having an opening corresponding to the opening in the car floor. The hopper 5 has inclined walls 6 which incline inward to their lower ends 7, and at the upper portion there is provided a plate 8 which rests against the wall of the opening in the car floor and there is also provided an outwardly extending plate 9 which is secured against the under side of the car flooring. The interior of this hopper forms a continuation of the interior opening of the reservoir 1 and the sand from the latter is continuously fed into the hopper as the supply from the latter diminishes.

As a means for inolosing the hopper and its valve mechanism so that outside elements will not affect the contents nor the working of the valve, I provide an exterior casing 10 which surrounds the hopper below the car floor, the walls of which incline inwardly and terniinate in a cylindrical mouth 11 to which a hose may be secured for directing the sand to the car track. The casing 10 and the plate 9 of the hopper are secured to the under side of the car flooring by the bolts 3 which also hold the reservoir.

As a means for controlling the flow of sand through the hopper, I provide a swing gate valve which is shown in perspective in Fig. 5. It consists of a circularly disposed bottom plate 12, upwardly extending plates 14 formed at each end thereof and an interior stirring rod or agitator 14.. At the upper ends of the plates 14, there is provided a journal 15 having a polygonal aperture 16 therethrough, the latter being adapted to receive corresponding ends 23 and 24 of the removable axles 18.

The curved bottom 12 of the valve is preferably formed on the arc of a circle whose center is taken from the center of: the axle so that the bottom plate may be formed on an arc of considerable size.

The stirring rod 14. is placed preferably nearer one end of the bottom and directed at such an angle as is shown in Fig. 1 so as to cause it to move on arcs whose common centers are at the center of the axle 18, so that when the valve is in its closed position, as is shown in Fig. 1, the stirring rod will lie near one side of the hopper bottom and move across the latter when the valve is operated. By positioning the stirring rod in this manner, the upper as well as the lower end serves to effectually stir the sand in the hopper and loosen it for discharge when the valve is open.

My improvements particularly relate to the means for providing a proper closure between the end of the hopper and the valve so that the latter may be made here shown, on an arc of a large circle and be free to have a considerable swing, and so that the sand when the valve is closed will not be discharged by jarring or otherwise.

It the bottom plate of the valve is made to extend far enough to inclose the lower end of the hopper, the extent of the swing of the hopper is limited. I therefore provide on the curved plate 12 of the hopper longi tudinal ribs 19 which extend across the plate 12 from one of the upright plates 14 to the other and they are so located that when the valve is in the position shown in Fig. 1, the ribs 19 will come almost in contact with the lower end 7 of the hopper. They may be brought sutficiently near to the lower end 7 to prevent the discharge of sand and still be free to pass the same without interfering therewith. The ribs 19 are preferably made with a long incline 20 on one side and a shorter incline 21 on the opposite side. In this way the valve is free to swing in the extseme direction shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, without interfering with the hopper, and when the valve is closed there is no tendency of the sand to pile up from the bottom of the valve and escape between the valve and hopper and by reason of the close proximity of the ribs to the end of the hopper. There is thus secured all the advantages of a gate valve whose bottom is made on a large arc and which may be swung very far in opening and which will have a proper means for preventing the leakage of the sand.

I provide means for operating the valve which consists of the iollowing:The axles 18, heretofore referred to, are journaled at 22 in the casing 10 of the sand box so that their ends 23 and 24 respectively, project beyond the sides of the casing. The end 24 is polygonal and there is fitted over it a lever 25, which is a bell crank lever having a second arm 26, the lever being secured to the axle by a pin 27. The lever 25 extends at an angle below the axle and there is pro vided a stationary stop 28 against which the arm 26 rests when the valve is in the position shown in Fig. l. Secured to the end of the lever 25 is a rod 29 which is connected with means for pulling the lever 25 forward for the purpose of operating the valve. There is provided means for regulating the extreme throw of the lever 25 so that the valve may be swung to any desired position at each operation of the lever and this may be adjusted to suit the requirements. For this purpose I provide an ear 30 on the side of the casing 10 in which there is a screw 31 adapted to be regulated so that the end thereof will engage the projecting portion 32 of the lever 25, and by adjustment of the screw 31, the extreme throw of the lever 25 may be regulated.

When it is desired to operate the valve, the rod 29 is pulled forward by any means which may be provided for that purpose and the action is transmitted through the lever 25 and the axle to the swing gate valve which moves upon its axles and the sand is discharged through the hopper and easing. While the valve is moving as thus described, the stirring rod 14 loosens the sand so that it can move downward through the hopper.

Having described my invention what I claim is'.

1. In a sand box, a hopper, a swing gate valve having a curved bottom, said valve being adapted to close the end of the hopper, and projecting ribs on the valve bottom extending toward the hopper end, for closing the space be tween the valve and hopper end.

2. In a sand box, a hopper, a swing gate valve having a curved bottom adapted to lie. below the end of-the hopper, upwardly extending ribs on the bottom of the valve adapted to close the space between the hopper end and valve, the said valve being adapted to swing and open the hopper.

3. In a sand box, a hopper, a swing gate valve having a bottom curved on an arc whose radius is as long as the distance between the axle of the valve and the middle of the valve bottom, said valve being adapted to lie below the end of the hopper and projecting ribs 0n the valve bottom adapted to close the space between the hopper and valve.

4. In a sand box, a hopper, a swing gate valve having a curved bottom. said valve bottom being adapted to lie be low the hopper end, a casing inclosing the hopper and valve and projecting ribs adapted to close the space between the valve bottom and hopper end, the said ribs being adapted to pass the hopper end, as the valve is oscillated.

5. In a sand box, a hopper, rectangular in crosssection, a swing valve comprising a curved bottom adapted to lie below the end of the hopper, having upwardly extending supporting plates adapted to inclose the hopper on two sides, and projections extending between the said supporting plates and projecting near and toward the hopper end to complete the inclosure of the hopper end.

Signed this 28th day of February, 1907.

JOSEPH L. LEVY.

Witnesses G. IRA ARMAND, BLANCHE V. MAI-ION-

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