US876500A - Car-coupling. - Google Patents

Description

No. 876,500. 'PATENTED JAN. 14,1908. G. E. STARBIRD & G. M. POX.

CAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED IEB.4, 1907.

2 SHEETSSHEET l.

7H5 NpRRls PETER: cc WASHING-ION; n. c.'

No. 876,500. PATENTED JAN. 14, 1908. G. B. STARBIRD a; G. M. FOX. OAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED IEB.4.1907.

' 2 SHEBTSSHEET 2.

TIE. 5

Suva row 66023 627. 577/n5/rd, a

Geo/ye M ("f 0,0

witnesses rns NORRIS FErEks cm, wasumcwn, n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT oEEroE.

GEORGE E. STARBIRD, OF ELMI-IURST, ILLINOIS, AND GEORGE M. FOX, OF OUT BANK, MONTANA.

CAR-COUPLING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 14:, 1908.

Application filed February 4. 1907. smart). 355679.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE E. STAR- BIRD and GEORGE M. Fox, citizens of the United States, residing, respectively, at Elmhurst, in the county of Dupage and State of Illinois, and at Cut Bank, in the county of .Teton and State of Montana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Couplings; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to improvements in car couplings of the Janney type, particularly with reference to the construction of the knuckle and of improved means for releasing the knuckle and causing the same to swing to open position when uncoupling the cars, and it consists in the construction, combination, and arrangement of devices hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure-1 is a side elevation of our improved car coupling, showing a portion of the car to which it is attached; Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the same, taken on the plane indicated by the line a-a of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the same. Fig. 4 represents an end elevation of this improved coupling applied.

The draw bar is composed of an upper section 1 and a lower section 2, bolted or otherwise suitably secured together, and provided at their rear ends, on their upper and lower sides, respectively, with shoulders 3 to en gage a plate 4 which connects the draft beams 5 and a shoulder 6. A look block 7 is pivoted near its rear end, as at 8, in a longitudinal opening 9 in the draw head. Said lock block is provided on one side, near its free end, with a notch 10, and the lower section of the draw bar is formed with a shoulder 11 to engage said notch when the lock block is in its lowered, normal osition and assist the pivot 8 to withstand ongitudinal stress on the lock block. Said lock block is provided on its opposite side near its free end, with a shoulder 12, and a notch 13 immediately in rear of said shoulder. The knuckle 14 is provided with a rearwardly extending arm 15 to enter a recess 16 in the inner side of the jaw 17. Said arm has a notch 18 to receive the shoulder 12 of the lock block and a shoulder 19 to enter the notch 13 of said lock block. The knuckle is pivotally connected to the said jaw by the usual pin 20, and when the arm of the knuckle is engaged with the block, when the latter is lowered and the knuckle closed said lock block partially relieves the pin 20 of draft stress, as will be understood. The face 21 of the knuckle is coextensive in height with the aw 17 of the knuckle, that is to say, it is formed at its upper and lower sides with extensions 22, concaved on their inner sides, to bear on the lugs 23 which project forwardly from the jaw 17 and receive the pivot pin 20. This greatly strengthens the construction, both of the knuckles and the draw head and adds very greatly to the durability thereof. At the rear end of the lock block is a lever arm 24 which extends downwardly therefrom and projects through an 1cgpening 25 in the lower section of the draw In the lower section of the drawbar is a recess 26, which communicates with the recess 16 and in which operates the crank arm 27 of a rock shaft 28 which is vertically disposed, and journaled in an opening in the lower portion of the draw head. To the lower end of said rock shaft is secured a rearwardly extending tappet arm 29, which is extended downwardly. Said tappet arm has a forwardly extending portion 30, connected by a slack chain 31 to the draw head, to prevent loss of the tappet arm should it become casually detached from the rock shaft and the latter become broken.

Under the end of the car is a revoluble and longitudinally movable operating shaft 32 which is disposed transversely with respect to the car, extends to one side thereof and is mounted on suitable bearings in hangers or other suitable devices 33, 34. The inner portion of said shaft, where it travels through the bearings 34, is angular and on said angu lar portion is loosely mounted a lock-blockoperating arm 35, which has an angular opening to receive the angular portion of said chain 38 to the lever arm 24 of the lock block. The operating shaft is also provided with a tappet arm 39 which is fixed thereto.

The operation of our invention is as follows1-1n order to uncouple, the operating shaft is partly turned, which may be done by a man stationed at one side of the car, out of the way, to cause the arm to draw upon the chain 33 and the lever arm 24 and hence cause the free end of the lock block to be raised, so as to disengage the arm of the knuckle. Such partial rotary movement of the operating shaft brings its key or spline 37 into alinement with the notch 36 of the bearing 33, and the said shaft is then moved longitudinally, inwardly, to cause its tappet arm to engage that of the crank shaft, and partly turn said crank shaft so as to cause its crank arm to turn, and by so doing, also cause the knuckle to be positively turned to open or uncoupled position. The length of the spline is such that it remains in the notch 36 when the operating shaft is thus moved inwardly and coacts with said notch to lock the shaft against rotation and hence to keep the lock block in elevated position until the knuckle has been turned to open position. The operating shaft must then be moved outwardly to withdraw its tappet arm from that of the knuckle-operating rock shaft, and to Withdraw its spline from the notch 36, and permit the arm 39 to drop and the arm 35 to rise, to slacken the chain 38 and permit the free end of the lock block to drop on the arm of the knuckle, ready to rengage said arm and lock the knuckle when the latter is automatically turned to coupling or closed position, as will be understood.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is In a car coupling of the Janney type, in combination with the drawhead and the pivoted knuckle having the arm, a lock block in the drawhead mounted for vertical pivotal movement, a revoluble element to open the knuckle andhaving a tappet arm, and a revoluble and longitudinally movable operat ing element, having a connection with the lock block to operate the latter and also having a tappet arm to coact with that of the revoluble knuckle-opening element.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands, each in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE E. STARBIRD. GEO. M. ,FOX.

Witnesses to the signature of George E. Starbird:

JoHN E. HosmR, G. E. RODGER. Witnesses to the signature of George M. Fox:

B. S. HARDACER, CHAS. N. THOMAS.

Images