US1401798A - Railway-switch heater - Google Patents

Description

W-.T. LAWLOR.

RAILWAY SWITCH HEATER. APPLICATION FILED MAR} 31, I92].

1 ,40 1 ,7 98 Patented Dec. 27, 1921.

' w. T. LA WLOR WITNESSES 1 'A TTOR/VEYS RAILWAY-SWITCH HEATER.-

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Deg, 27, 1921,

v Application filed March 31, 1921. Serial No. 457,231.

To all whom it may concern Beit known that 1, "WILLIAM T. LAwLoR, a citizen of the United States, and a'resident of Jersey City, inthe county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and Improved Railway-Switch Heater, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in railway switch heaters, and has particular reference to devices of the character illustrated in Letters Patent of the United States, #1,327,488, issued to me on January 6th, 1920, said patent disclosing a device in which a plurality of open topped oil pans are located between the ties of a railroad under the rails of a switch mechanism, and in which oil is burned in the pans to keep the switches open and in working order during heavy snowstorms.

In these devices, the oil feed pipe enters the pan below its upper edge. It has been discovered that during warm weather rain collects in the "pans and when a sudden change in temperature occurs, the rain water in the pans freezes and blocks the fuel inlets so that it is necessary to pickthe ice out of the pans in order to permit a flow of fuel.

It is an object of this invention, therefore, to provide covers for the pans, which will prevent water from collecting therein during rainstorms, and which may be quickly moved out of the way when the pans are in use.

A still further object is to provide means for simultaneously operating all of the pan covers and to provide covers and operating mechanisms therefor, which will be simple and practical in construction, strong and durable in use, and comparatively inexpensive to manufacture.

l Vith these and other objects in view, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts as will be more fully hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

in the accompanying drawings v Figure 1 is a plan view of a fragment of a railway switch and adjacent parts showing my improved heater in applied position;

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of one of the pans illustrating the details of the .pan cover and its actuating mechanism; 7

Referring morespecifically to'the drawings I show a conventional arrangement of cross ties 1O spaced from one another and upon which the stock rail 11, switch rail 12, and movable switch points 13 and 14 are supported in any well known or approved manner.

15 indicates a reservoir adapted to contain any suitable supply of liquid fuel such as crude oil or the like, the same being adapted to be conveyed to and along the switch mechanism by means of a transverse pipe 16 and parallel longitudinal pipes 17 and 18, shown as supported upon the end portions of the cross ties on opposite sides of the railway rails. These longitudinal pipes may be secured in a fixed position with respect to the ItlllS' by means of clips 19 fixed to certain of the ties.

The improved pan or receptacle for the liquid fuel is shown as a whole at 20 and comprises a semi-cylindrical body 21 having a rounded bottom and vertical end walls 22, shown as rectangular in form and having their lower edges 22 lying in the same horizontal plane and'serving asmeans to support the pan firmly upon the ballast 23 below and betweenthe ties. Thus it will be seen that the end walls 22 not only serve to close the receptacle body at the ends but constitute downward extensions below the rounded convex bottom of the pan. One side of the pan body is provided with a nipple 24 having a port 25 opening into the hollow interior I of the pan along which the liquid fuel may be caused to drip or pour from a tube 26 leadingfrom one of the side pipes 17, the quantity of the oil delivered being regulatable delicately by the adjustment of a valve tubes 26.

The invention in this case resides primarily in the provision of flat covers 28 for the pans. Channel guide blocks 29 are secured upon the 'endwalls of the pans and the covers 28 are slidable between the guide blocks. T h pan covers include at each end a forwardly presented arm 30. When the covers are pulled back to permit the burning of fuel in the pans, the arms 30 will serve to prevent the covers from complete disengagement with the pans and will guide the moveseated in each of the.

ment of the covers incidental to again closing the pans.

I do not Wish to be limited to any particular means for operating the covers, but I have illustrated one practical mechanism for simultaneously operating all of the covers 01 one series of pans.

Located upon the ends of the cross ties 10, are split bearing blocks 31, in which crank shafts 32 located in parallelism with the pipes 17 and 18 are mounted. Relatiyelyshort crank arms 88 are rigidly connected to the crank shafts 32. A crank lever 3a is provided at the endo'lf each shaft 82 for operating the arms. Brackets 35 are secured upon the rear ends ofeach cover and links 36 are pivotally connected at one end to the crank arins and at their other ends to th brackets.

It will thus he seen by swinging the cranl: levers 34, the pan covers .48 Will he simultaneously operatel through the medium of the crank arms 83 and the links Various slight changes and. alterations might be made in the general "form and arrangement of the parts described Without departing from the invention, and hence I do not Wish to limit inysel'l to the precise details set forth, but shall consider myself at liberty to make such slight changes and alterations fairly fall Within the spiritand scope of the appended claims.

1 claim:

1. in a heating device for railway switches, the combination with a system of pipes, a reservoir from which said pipes are adapted to convey fluid fuel, and a plural ty of open topped pans located rails and communicating with the pipes, of covers adapted to cover the tops of the pans, and means for simultaneously operatin covers.

pipes, a reservoir i'roin which said pipes are adapted to convey fluid fuel, and a plurality of open topped pans located beneath the rails and commnnicatin With the pipes, oi? channel guide members carried by the pans, p ii covers slidahle in the guide members, and means for simultaneously operating all or said covers.

3. 111 a heating device for railway switches, the combination with a system of pipes, a reservoir from which said pipes adapted convey liuid fuel, and a plurality of open topped pans located beneath the rails and cci iicating with the pipes, of channel guide members carried by the pans, pan covers slidable in the guide members, and means for simultaneously operating all of said covers, said means comprising a crank shaft, crank arms carried by the crank shaft, means operatively connecting the cranlr arms and covers, and means for operating the shaft.

l. lln a heating device for railway switches, th combination with a system of pipes, a reservoir from which said pipes are adapted to convey fluid :tuei, and a plurality open topped pans located beneath the rails and communicating with the pipes, of Cllci-llllfil guide members carried by the pans, pan covers slidable in the guide members, and means for simultaneously operating all of said covers, said means comprising a crank shaft, a crank lever fixed to the shaft, crank arms carried by the shaft, brackets 0 'ed to the pan covers, links pivotally coni: netted to the brackets and crank arms.

The herein d scribed track heating

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