US904279A - Switch-frog. - Google Patents

Description

H. F. ROAGH.

SWITCH FROG.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 16, 190B.

Patented Nov. 17, 1908.

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H. F. ROAGH.

SWITCH FROG.

APPLIGATION TILED JULY 16, 1908.

Patented Nov. 17,1908.

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UNITED STATES rarer anion HARRY F. ROAOH, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO CONTINUOUS RAIL & SAFETY SWITCH 00., OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SWITCH-FROG.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 17, 1908.

Application filed July 16, 1908. Serial No. 443,824.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HARRY F. RoAon, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Switch- .Frogs, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which Figure 1 is a top plan view of a switch frog constructed in accordance with my in vention; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of a frog in which the base plate and other parts of the frog are covered by a housing; Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of the frog shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 4i is a vertical longitudinal sec tional view of a portion of Fig. 1 taken through the longitudinal center of the heel end of the frog; Fig. 5 is an enlarged cross sectional View taken on approximately the line 55 of Fig. 1, said figure also showing the base plate and movable tongue provided with plates that form a housing as shown in Fig. 2; Fig. 6 is an enlarged cross sectional View taken on the line 66 of Fig. 1; Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6 looking in the direction of the arrow; and Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the movable tongue in an inverted. position.

This invention relates to railway track structures, and particularly to frogs of that type in which a movable tongue or frogpoint is arranged at the intersection of the inside rails of two intersecting tracks, such, for example, as a main line and a siding or a crossing.

One object of my present invention is to provide a movable tongue or frog-point which is constructed of rolled T-rails.

-Another object is to provide a railway track structure of the character above referred to in which the track rails that terminate at the heel end of the movable tongue are so constructed that their heads project over the pivot pin which forms the fulcrum for the movable tongue and thus prevent said pin from moving upwardly out of its socket.

Another object is to provide a track structure of the character referred to having novel means for limiting the lateral movement of the movable tongue and preventing it from rising upwardly from the base plate on which it slides.

Another object is to provide a track struc ture of the character described in which the base plate that the tongue slides on and part of the mechanism that actuates and locks the tongue, are incased in a housing which protects said parts from snow and ice. And still another object of my invention is to provide a movable tongue or frog-point which is mounted in such a manner that it will not tilt or rock when a wheel passes onto either of its ends.

Other objects and desirable features of my invention will be hereinafter pointed out.

Referring to the drawings which illustrate the preferred form of my lnvention, 1 designates a fiat metallic base plate which has a member A connected to one end thereof by means of fastening devices 2. This member A is provided with vertically disposed side walls 3 to which the webs of the inside rails at and 5 of two tracks are connected by means of bolts or fastening devices 6 that pass transversely through said vertical walls and transversely disposed strengthening webs 7 which are formed integral with the walls 3 and the base of the member A, as shown clearly in Figs. 1 and 4.

The member A is provided with a horizontally disposed flange 8 that rests on the base plate and also projects underneath the base flanges of the rails 41 and 5, portions of the base flanges of said rails being cut away so that the webs of said rails can lie against the vertical side walls 3 of the member A and the remaining portions of the flanges can butt against saidmember so as to prevent the rails from creeping. The fastening devices 2 securely connect the member A to the base plate but, if desired, said member can be provided with a downwardly projecting lug 9, as shown in Fig. 4:, that enters an opening in the base plate so as to absolutely prevent said member from creeping or moving relatively to the base plate. The base plate is provided adjacent its other end with a member B of substantially the same construction as the member A, and the inside rails a and 5, which form continuations clearly in Fig. 4:, portions of the heads of of the rails 4E and 5, are connected to the ver- 1 tical side walls of the member B by fastening devices 6* which extend transversely through said parts.

A movable tongue or frog-point C is arranged between the members A and B, and means is provided for moving said tongue laterally over the base plate so that its toe end G will aline with either the rails 45* or 5 so as to form a continuous rail, the heel end C of said tongue being pivotally connected to the member A so that it will always be in alinement with the rails l and 5. The tongue C herein shown is composed of two pieces 10 and 10 of rolled T-rail that are connected together so as to produce a tapered member. A portion of the inner edge of the head of the piece 10 is cut away slightly so as to produce a shoulder 11 adjacent the toe end of the tongue C, and the head and base flange of the piece 1O are sheared ofl so as to produce a long sharp pointed wedge that lies alongside of the piece 10, the point or end of the piece 1O butting against the shoulder 11 in the head of the piece 10, as shown in Fig. 1. Both heads of the pieces 10 and 10 are of normal width at the heel end of the tongue, as shown in Figs. 1 and 5, but the inner half of the base flange of the piece 10 is sheared off flush with its vertical web, as shown in Fig. 5 so that the inner edge of the base flange of the piece 10 can contact with the vertical web of the piece 10-, as shown clearly in Fig. 5. The head of the piece 10 is of normal width at the toe end of the tongue so that it conforms accurately to the heads of the rails 4 and 5 with which it cotiperates, and the webs of both the members 10 and 10 are continuous from the heel to the toe end of the tongue so that a very strong and rigid structure is produced.

A filler 12 is arranged between the pieces 10 and 10 and fastening devices 13 pass transversely through said filler and the webs of the pieces 10 and 10 to securely connect said parts together. The ends of the heads of the pieces 10 and 10 at the heel end of the tongue are cut at an angle, as shown in Fig. 1, and the ends of the heads of the rails at and 5 are also cut at an angle so as to produce an approximately V -shaped pocket for receiving the heel end of the movable tongue C. The filler 12 projects slightly beyond the ends of the pieces 10 and 10 at the heel end of the tongue, and said filler is provided with an integral downwardly projecting pivot pin that enters a socket formed in themeniber A on the base plate. As shown the rails at and 5 project over the upper end of said pivot pin 14 and thus prevent said pin from moving upwardly out of its socket.

A plate 15 is connected to the underneath l2? of said members.

side of the heel end of the tongue C, and the base plate 1 is provided with a stop 16 that projects upwardly into a slot 17 in said plate 15 and also into a slot in the base flange of the piece 10 which forms part of the movable tongue so as to relieve the strain on the pivot pin 14 and also form an abutment which helps to limit the lateral movement of the tongue. The base plate 1 can be provided with any suitable kind of a stop 16 but I prefer to form said stop from a metallic lug that is inserted in a hole in the base plate and then upset, as shown clearly in Figs. 4 and The tongue C is provided adjacent its toe end with a plate 18 which is connected to the underneath side of the tongue and projects laterally from each side thereof, and a similar plate 19 is connected to the underneath side of the tongue C intermediate the plates 15 and 18, as shown in Fig. 8. The plate 18 at the toe end of the tongue slides on the base plate, and said plate 18 is provided with elongated slots or openings 20 through which stops 21 on the base plate project so as to limit the lateral movement of the tongue. The intermediate plate 19 does not bear directly on the base plate but is spaced a slight distance away therefrom so that only the end portions of the tongue C normally rest upon the base plate. Consequently, .the tongue will not tilt or rock when a wheel passes onto either end thereof for the tongue has no direct bearing on the base plate intermediate its ends. lVhen a wheel travels over the tongue the intermediate plate 19 will, of course, be forced down onto the base plate but when the wheel first strikes either end of said tongue the intermediate plate is out of engagement with the base plate. The intermediate plate 19 is also provided with elongated slots or openings 22 through which stops 23 on the base plate project, and if desired, these stops, and also the stops 21 for the plate 18 at the toe end of the tongue, can be connected to the base plate in the same manner that the stop 16 for the plate 15 is connected to said base plate.

A pair of members 24: are mounted on the plate 18 at each side of the tongue C, and.

each of said members has a horizontally disposed flange 25 that is connected to the plate 18 by countersunk fastening devices 26. This horizontally disposed flange 25 pro jectsover the base flange of the tongue C and clamps it securely upon the base plate 1, and at the inner edge of the horizontal flange 25 is a vertical flange 27 that lies against the outside face of the vertical web of the tongue C, as shown in Fig. 6, both of the members 24 being secured to the tongue by fastening devices 28 that pass transversely through the tongue and the vertical flanges Each of the members 24 is also provided with a pair of parallel flanges 29 that are formed integral with the horizontal flange 25 and the vertical flange 27 so as to produce a rigid structure. If desired, the upper edges of said flanges 29 can be inclined, as shown in Fig. 6, and a cross web 30 can be arranged between the outer ends of said flanges, said cross web being formed integral with said flanges and the horizontal flange 25. The horizontal flanges of the members 24 are provided with elongated slots or openings that aline with the openings 20 in the plate 18, and the openings in both the plate 18 and the horizontal flanges of the members 2 1 are enlarged intermediate their ends, as shown in Fig. 8, to receive the heads of the stops 21 on the base plate when the parts of the frog are being assembled. Said stops are provided with heads 21 that project laterally from all sides of the shanks of the stops and when the tongue is in operative position said heads will project laterally beyond the side edges of the narrow portions of the slots in the horizontal flanges of the members 24-, as shown in Fig. 7, and thus absolutely prevent the tongue C from moving upwardly from the base plate. The heads 21 on the stops 21 also project laterally beyond the ends of the slots in the members 2%, as shown in Fig. 6, when the tongue is in either of its extreme positions. Preferably, the slots 20 and 22 in the plates 18 and 19, respectively, are so proportioned that the shanks of the stops on the base plate 1 which project through said slots will not contact with the vertical end walls of said slots when the movable tongue is in either of its extreme positions, as shown in Fig. 6. That is to say, the heads 21 of the stops instead of the shanks of said stops act as abutments for limiting the movements of the tongue, the slots in the plates 18 and 19 being so formed that if dirt or any other foreign matter should collect in the ends of the slots it would not prevent the tongue from moving to its extreme positions. As shown in Fig. 1, the vertical flange 27 of each of the members 2st is provided with a thickened portion 27 in which a recess is formed for receiving a lock ing device 27 that is pivotally connected to the base plate, only one of said locking devices being shown in Fig. 1. This locking device 27* is operated by means of a bar or link 27, and a short link 27 is connected to the locking device 27 and to the member 24 for imparting movement to the tongue. Preferably, the member 2st is provided with a horizontally disposed flange 27 under which the inner end of the short link 27 is arranged.

A pairiof members 24? of similar construction to the members 24 are connected to the upper side of the intermediate plate 19 and to the movable tongue but the slots in the horizontal flanges of the members 24 through which the stops 23 project are not widened or enlarged interi'nediate their ends for the stops 23 are not provided with heads that project laterally beyond the side edges of said slots, the stops 23 merely having heads that project beyond the ends of the slots in the members 24 when the movable tongue is in either of its extreme positions.

I prefer to provide the members 24 and 24 with covers for preventing snow, ice, and other foreign matter from getting into the slots in said members through which the stops on the base plate project, and in the construction herein shown, each of the members 2 1 and 2 1 is provided with a metal plate 31 that rests upon the upper edges of the parallel flanges 29 of said members so as to form a closed housing in which the stops on the base plate lie. The metal plate 31 is provided at its inner edge with a tongue 32 that projects into a slot in the vertical flange 27, and the outer end of said plate 31 is provided with an opening through which a bolt 33 passes, as shown in Fig. (5, nuts 32L being mounted on said bolt on each side of the plate 31 so as to securely lock it in position.

If desired, the entire base plate, the 1nem bers 24 and 24 which project laterally from the movable tongue, and also part of the mechanism that actuates and locks said tongue can be covered by a housing so as to protect said parts from snow and ice. I have illustrated such a construction in Figs. 2 and 5, and referring to said figures, it will be seen that the base plate is provided with two metal plates 35 that project upwardly from the side edges of the base plate and then extend inwardly toward the movable tongue C. Plates 36 project laterally from each side of said tongue over the inwardly extending portions of the plates 35 so as to close the opening between the edges of the plates 35 and permit the tongue to move laterally over the base plate. The housing which these plates 35 and 36 form absolutely prevents snow and ice from collecting on the base plate and thus interfering with the movement of the tongue. The locking device 27 on the base plate which enters a notch in the toe end of the tongue to lock it in position, and also the inner end of the operating rod 27 and link 27 which form part of the actuating mechanism for the tongue, arearranged inside of said housing so that these parts are protected from snow and ice.

Vhile I have herein shown a movable tongue 0 constructed of pieces of T-rail, I wish it to be clearly understood that the particular construction of the tongue is immaterial so far as the other features of my invention are concerned, and that a one-piece tongue or cast tongue could be provided with a pivot pin, bearing plates, stop-incasing means, and the various other features herein described that do not relate to the construction of the tongue per se, Without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I Iaving thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Let ters Patent is:

1. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a movable tongue, a pivot pin rigidly connected to said tongue, a socket member for receiving said pin, and track rails having portions of their heads projecting over said pivot pin to retain it in position; substantially as described.

2. A railway track structure of the character described,comprising a movable tongue, a pivot pin rigidly connected to said tongue and projecting into a socket in a stationary member, and means projecting over the up per end of said pin to prevent it from moving out of its socket; substantially as described.

3. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a movable tongue having a pivot pin that projects into a socket in a stationary member, and rails terminating at the heel end of said tongue and having portions of their heads projecting over the upper end of said pivot pin; substantially as described.

t. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a movable tongue provided at its heel end with a pivot pin, a stationary member provided with a socket for receiving said pin, and track rails connected to said stationary member and having portions of their heads projecting over said pivot pin; substantially as described.

5. A railway track structure of the char acter described, comprising a base plate, a member mounted on said base plate and provided with vertically disposed walls, track rails having their vertical webs contacting with said walls, fastening devices passing through the walls of said member and the webs of said rails to connect them together, and a movable tongue having a pivot pin that is arranged underneath portions of the heads of said track rails: substantially as described.

6. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a member mounted on said base plate and provided with vertical walls and a horizontally disposed flange, track rails resting on said flange and having their vertical webs lying against the vertical walls on said member, and fastening devices passing through said webs and walls to connect said parts together; substantially as described.

7. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a

member mounted on said base plate and provided with vertically disposed walls and ribs arranged between and integrally connected to said walls, and track rails connected to said member by means of fastening devices which extend transversely through the webs of the rails and the vertical walls of said member; substantially as described.

8. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a member mounted on said base plate and provided with a horizontally disposed flange that is connected to the base plate by fastening devices, a downwardly projecting lug on said flange which enters an opening in the base plate, and track rails secured to said member; substantially as described.

9. A railway track structure of the character described, provided with a movable tongue which consists of two pieces of T-rail, one of said pieces having its head and base flange sheared off so as to produce a wedgeshaped member and the other piece having a portion of its head cut away to receive said wedge-shaped member, a filler interposed between said pieces and extending for nearly the entire length of said tongue, and fastening devices passing transversely through said parts; substantially as described.

10. A railway track structure of the char acter described, provided with a movable ton ue which consists of two members ar- ID ranged side by side, a filler interposed between said members and having a pivot pin rigidly connected thereto, fastening devices extending through said members and filler to connect said parts together, a stationary member having a socket for receiving said pin, and means projecting over the top of said pin to hold it in said socket; substantially as described.

11. A railway track structure of the character described, provided with a movable tongue which consists of two members arranged side by side and a filler interposed between said member and projecting beyond the ends of same, a pivot pin formed integral with the projecting portion of said filler and depending therefrom, and a stationary member having a socket for receiving said pivot pin; substantially as described.

12. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate and a movable tongue slidingly mounted on said base plate and having only its end portions normally contacting with the base plate; substantially as described.

13. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, and a movable tongue mounted on said base plate in such a manner that it will not tilt or rock when a wheel passes onto either end of said tongue; substantially as described.

14. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on said base plate, and bearings on the end portions of said tongue which normally rest on the base plate, the intermediate portion of the tongue being normally spaced away from the base plate; substantially as described.

g 15. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue provided adjacent its ends with bearings which rest on the base plate, and an intermediate bearing on the tongue which is normally spaced away from the base plate; substantially as described.

16. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on the base plate and provided with bearings that project laterally from opposite sides of the tongue, and stops on the base plate projecting into openings in saidbearings; substantially as described.

17. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a tongue mounted on said base plate and provided with a bearing plate that projects laterally from opposite sides of the tongue, said bearing plate being provided with elongated slots or openings, and stops on the base plate arranged in said openings and provided with heads that project laterally beyond the side edges of said openings; substantially as described.

l8. Arailway track structure of the character described, a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on said base plate, a bearing plate rigidly connected to the underneath side of said tongue and reinforcing project ing laterally from the sides thereof, and members arranged on each side of the tongue in engagement therewith and connected to said bearing plate; substantially as described.

19. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on said base plate, a bearing plate projecting laterally from the opposite sides of said tongue and rigidly connected thereto, and members mounted on said bearing plate on each side of the tongue and connected to said plate and to the sides or vertical web of the tongue to reinforce and strengthen same; substantially as described.

20. A railway track structure of the char acter described, comprising a base plate, a tongue mounted on said base plate, a bearing plate rigidly connected to the underneath side of said tongue and projecting laterally from the sides thereof, and reinforcing members connected to said bearing plate and provided with vertically disposed flanges that are connected to the tongue by fastening devices; substantially as described.

21. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on said base plate and provided at its lower edge with laterally projecting flanges, a bearing plate arranged underneath the tongue and connected to said flanges, members mounted on said bearing plate and resting on the laterally projecting flanges of the tongue, and vertically disposed flanges on said members that are connected to the tongue by means of fastening devices; substantially as described.

92. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on said base plate, laterally projecting members connected to said tongue and provided with elongated slots or openings, and stops on the base plate having heads that project beyond the ends of said openings when the tongue is in either of its extreme positions; substantially as described.

23. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a tongue mounted on said base plate and provided with laterally projecting members having elongated slots or openings, stops on the base plate which project into said open ings, and means for preventing said openings from becoming clogged; substantially as described.

24. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a tongue mounted on said base plate and provided with laterally projecting members having elongated slots or openings, stops on the base plate which project into said openings, and housings extending over said openings; substantially as described.

25. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on said base plate and provided with laterally projecting members having horizontal flanges in which slots or openings are formed, stops on the base plate that project into said openings, walls on said members surrounding said openings, and covers extending over said walls to prevent the openings from becoming clogged; substantially as described.

26. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on said base plate, and a laterally projecting member connected to each side of said tongue, each of said members consisting of a horizontally disposed flange provided with an opening that receives a stop on the base plate, a vertical flange that is connected to the tongue, parallel vertical flanges arranged on either side of the opening in the horizontal flange, and a cover mounted upon the upper edges of said parallel flanges; substantially as described.

27. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a

movable tongue mounted on said base plate, and provided with a slot, and a stop on the stops for limiting the lateral movement of base plate that projects into said slot; subsaid tongue, and a housing consisting of plates that are connected to the base plate, and cooperating plates that project laterally from the tongue; substantially as described.

28. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on said base plate, stops for limiting the lateral movement of said tongue, means for locking the tongue in its adjusted positions, and a housing which prevents said stops and said locking means from becoming clogged with snow or ice; substantially as described.

29. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on the base plate and provided with laterally projecting mem bers having slots or openings which receive stops on the base plate, means on the base plate for locking said tongue, a housing on the base plate provided with an opening to provide for the lateral movement of the tongue, and laterally projecting plates on the tongue for covering said opening; substantially as described.

30. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a member arranged on said base plate and provided with a socket, a movable tongue provided with a pivot that extends into said socket, a bearing plate connected to the underneath side ofthe heel end of the tongue stantially as described.

31. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on the base plate, a member connected to the toe end of the tongue and projecting laterally therefrom, said member being provided with a vertically disposed flange in which a recess is formed, a locking device mounted on the base plate and adapted to enter said recess, means for actuating said locking device, and a link connected to said locking device and to a flange on said member; substantially as described.

32. A railway track structure of the character described, comprising a base plate, a movable tongue mounted on the base plate and provided with laterally projecting bearings having slots formed therein, stops on the base plate which project through said slots but do not contact with the end walls thereof, and heads on said stops that cooperate with abutments on said bearings; substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affiX my signature in the presence of two witnesses, this eighth day of July 1908.

HARRY F. ROAGH.

Witnesses WVELLs L. CHURcH, GEORGE BAKEWELL.

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