US2646176A - Coupler - Google Patents

Description

July 21, 1953 H. H. woLFE 2,646,176

COUPLER Filed March 17, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet l l H' llllvl.v4

H. H. WOLFE July 21, 1953 COUPLER 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 17, 1949 H. H. WOLFE July 2l, 1953 COUPLER 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 17, 1949 o lb ATTOR N EY July 21, 1953 H. H. woLFE 2,646,176

coUPLER Filed March 17, 1949 4 sheets-sheet 4 Patented l .uly 21,195.15

ATE-NT vOFFICE COUPLER Harry H. Wolfe, Columbus, Ohio, assignorto The Buckeye Steel Castings Company,y Columbus,

Ohio

Application March 17, 1949', Serial No. 81,893

The present invention relates to a railway couv pler of the knuckle type and the invention more particularly pertains to tightlock couplers and to improvements in thelock andV associated parts of such coupling devices.

The tightlockcoup-ler in present day use is provided with a lockihaving a wedge-shaped face which is adapted tobe'engaged by a surface on the knuckle tail which is inclined with respect to a vertical plane. Such inclined lock bearing surfaces facilitate movement of the lock to a locked position when the knuckle is closed. The wedge-shaped lock; however, has the disadvann tage that when heavy pulling forces are applied on the knuckle a resultant forceis developed by lreason of the inclination of the lock bearing surfaces on the knuckle tail and the lockand this force is in adirection tending to lift the lock. In the use of a 4coupler having angularly disposed lock bearing surfaces train partings have occurred which may be partly attributed to the wedgegtype roi" lock. The tendency of the lock to move upwardly is more pronounced when the lock bearing surfaces are moist or oily.

An object of the present invention is to provide lock bearing surfaces between the knuckle and the lock with these surfaces disposedin a substantially true vertical positionor substantially parallel to the axis of the knuckle 'pivot pin so as to avoid wedgingv action which tends to lift the lock towards an unlocked/position.

A further object of the invention is to provider parts of a tightlock'coupler with finished or mashined surfaces which are shaped to provide'a minimum of clearance between the lock engaging face of the knuckle and a vertical face on the lock to'reduce slack in rthecontour of the' cou-4 pier and at the same time provide a knuckle and lock assembly which will permit the lock to drop l to the locked position.

A still further object of the invention is to pro- Videguding surfaces on the knuckle tail which bias the lock to a position for moving downwardly to vthe locked position even though the lock bearing surfaces are vertical with the Vclearance therebetween ata minimum and as small asl one thirty-second of an inch.

Other objects and features of the invention will be more apparent to those skilled in the art' as the present disclosure proceeds and upon consideration of the following detailed descriptionV and the accompanying drawings wherein an exemplary embodiment of the 'invention is` disclosed.

In the drawings:

solaires. (o1. 21a-144) Fig. 1- is a sectional plan view of a coupler assembly exhibiting the invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation ofthe coupler organization looking towards the knuckle side of the coupler. Fig. 3 isa fragmentary sectional View taken approximately on the line 3 3 of Fig. l showing thelockjin a raised position with the knuckle partly open.

Fig. 4 is a transverse section taken generally on the line li-il vof Fig. 1 showing the lock inV the locked position. l I

Fig. 5 is av sectional view similar to Fig. 3 showing the lock in an intermediate position and the knuckle partly closed.

Fig. 6 is an elevational view of the guardarm side of the lock.

Fig. 7 is a front elevational view of the lock.

' Fig. 8 is an elevational view of the knuckle side of the lock.

Fig. 9 is a plan viewr of the lock.

Fig. 10 is a Sectional view taken on the line lil-I0 of Fig. 4 and showing the position of the lock as the knuckle starts to move toward the closed position. Y

rIhe invention is directed tov a coupler provided with lock bearing surfaces arranged in a substantially vertical plane and approximately parallel with respect to the axis of swinging movement of the' knuckle. Such lock bearing surfaces thereby provide a structure which avoids a tendency of the lock to be lifted when heavy loads are applied in pull on the coupler. The vertical lockrbearing surfaces also prevent the lock'fromlifting or rising as a result ofV the presence of any liquid or lubricating materials on the knuckleand the lock. The invention furtherpertains to the structure ofthev knuckle and lock 'top promote downward movement of the lock 'when theknuckley is moved to the closed position and to maintain the lock in an elevated position when the knuckle is open. Another feature of the invention relatesto the design of the lock and the knuckle tail appendage so that the'movem'ent of the knuckleto the closed posi-v t1on will prepare the lockV for downward movement to the locked position even though the clearance between the bearing surfaces on the lock and the knuckle tail are as small as one thirty-second'of an inch.

Referring tothe drawings there is shown at ll ya coupler,v body or head.l In the embodiment illustratedrthe ycoupler is of the tightlock type provided wlth aligning wings l2 and 14' on each side of the coupler head. The lug carried by the toggle 2'1.

knuckle I5 and the pin H are associated with conventional type knuckle pivot lugs on the coupler head. A support pin i8 is employed in the usual manner to maintain the knuckle pin l'i in place. The tail of the knuckle is illustrated'at I9 and is generally of a construction like that of the prior art but the surfaces thereof for cooperation with the lock and the locking face as hereinafter described represent important changes over the known devices. The coupler includes a knuckle thrower 2i pivoted for swinging movement about the axis of its trunnion 22. The tip of the thrower engages a shoulder 25 on the under side of the knuckle I5 for moving it to an open position.

The lock is shown generally at 23 and is mounted for vertical movement within the coupler body iii 'which includes a lock housing 24 shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5. The lock 23 is actuated by means of 'lock lift assembly of a known type which includes a rotary lever 25 col operating with a toggle 2l. The lock 23 is provided' with a leg 28 which depends into a lock leg cavity or opening 33 for connection to the For this purpose a lock trunnion 29 is provided which extends laterally from the lower end 0f the lock leg 28.

The knuckle tail I9 Aon the lock side is provided wth a lock bearing face or surface 3l and this surface is arranged in a substantially vertical plane as best shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5. This lock bearing face 3l is also substantially parallel to the aXis of the knuckle pinV il. The face 3i is machined in contrast to the lock bearing surface of the Association of American Railroads Standard TypeE'coupler which is unmachined and thereforerequires a considerable amount of clearance of the associated parts to permit the lock to move downward to the locked position. immediately above the upper end of the vertical lock bearing' face 3l the knuckle tail carries an inclined surface 32. This sloping surface 32 is arranged at a steep inclination and at an angle of approximately twenty degrees with respect to a vertical plancand with respect tothe lock bearing face 3l.- fhe flat inclined surface 32 on the knuckle tail I3 merges at its upper end with a second inclined surface 33 provided immediately above the inclined surface 32. The surface 33 is inclined with'respect to the vertical face 3|- at about-'fifty degrees. The surfaces 32 and 33` are also machinedy and each carries a substantially straight flatfinish.'A The knuckle tail ES` is provided with` a'further inclinedsurface 3S of relatively large areaas shown in Figs.V 1, 3, 4 and 5. Y The knuckle tail i9 also carries ak bearing surface 38 which is adapted to engage a sidewall or abutment surface 39 of the coupler head.- The bearing surface 33 on the knuckle tailis machined andthe surface 39 forming an adjacent portion of the inner wall of the coupler body is ground to very close relation to -a lock bearing Wall 46 on the coupler head and forming a part of the lock housing 24.

rThe lock 23 is provided with a flat and substantially vertically disposed knuckle engaging sur#V in Fig. 5.

face 4i. A surface 42 s provided on the lock immediately above the vertical surface 4i. The surface 42 is inclined and so shaped that this side portion of the lock is substantially parallel to the surface 32 on the knuckle tail when the lock is in the locked position. A further inclined fiat surface 43 is provided on the lock 23 and this surface is substantially parallel to the surface 33 on the knuckle tail when the knuckle is in the closed position and with the lock in the locked position shown in Fig. 4. These faces on the .knuckle side of the lock 23 are machined to smooth flat surfaces. The lock 23 carries a ledge 45 under the lock fulcrum 45 which will ride on and engagea topsurface 4f of the knuckle tail i9 when the'knu'ckle is in an open position.

The lock includes a relatively flat side surface A48 which is adapted to engage the inner wall surface'li ofthe lock housing 24. ,2o.

When the knuckle. l`6 is moved towards the closed position the ledge 56 of the lock 23 rides on the surface d? on the knuckle tail i3. rILhe lock while being thus maintained in the raised position is restrained from moving laterally with the knuckle tail I9 by bearing surfaces 5l and 52 provided within the lock housing 24 as shown in Fig. l0. These guiding surfaces 5I and 52 engage correspending surfaces 54 and 55 on the lock. The guide surface 52 is provided on the inner edge of a vertically disposed rib 55. With the lock 23 engaging against the guide surfaces 5| and 52 there is a clearance of about one eighth of an inch between the face 48 of the lock and the guide wall 45. Thus the lock is shifted to the position shown in Fig. 10 as the knuckle is moved toward the closed position.

When the knuckle is open the lock 23 is supported in the raised position by the knuckle tail surface 41. As the knuckle is rotated towards the closed position the under side of the lock ledge 46 rides on the surface 4l of the knuckle tail and then slides down the inclined surface 35. The sloping surface 3G permits the lock to be moved downwardly so that a corner 6i] of the lock then engages the surface 33 on the knuckle tail. When the surface 38 on the knuckle tail contacts the coupler head surface 39 the lock guiding surfaces 54 and 55 are in engagement with the lock housing 24 at 5I and 52 and the cor ner Sii of the lock 23 is partly down the steep in- @lined surface 32 on` the knuckle tail as shown The lo'ck'23 then shifts to the right from the position shown in Fig. l0 as the corner 56 moves downwardly on the inclined surface 32. The surface 38 of the lock then engages the inner surface 4i) of the lock housing 24 as shown in Fig. 5. Due to the weight of thel lock and its momentum in sliding from the surface 4? onto the surface 36 and down the surface 33 and downwardly on the inclined.r surface 32 the lock will drop to the locked position as shown in Fig. fl. if a clearance of at least onethirty-second of an inch is provided between the face 3l on the knuckle tail I9 andthe surface 4l on the lock the coupler has been found to function properly and the lock moves into the locked position. The lock and the knuckle are so shaped that there is a small clearance between the surfaces 32 and2 and between the surfaces 33 and 43 when the knuckle is closed and with the lockr 23 in the locked position.

As hereinabove indicated the corner of the lock body 23 at the lower end of the vertical face 4I is arcuate shaped as indicated at 60 inFigs. 3,

5 and "1. It has been found that When the couwww AAH* pler parts are formed as.v hereing` described the Quryaturer at 6 0; should h avea radiusof a fullv one-fourth ofV an inch. This arcuate cornerI surface lfengages the sloping surface 33I and the steeper:inclined` surface 32` and further promotes moyement of the lock to thelocked position,

,'In a conventional coupler providedl with vertical'locking faceson the knuckleand lock these surfaces havenotbeen machined and do not have thesteepjinclined surface 3,2k on`v the knuckle tail'.

In suchacoupler a clearance of kone-fourthy to` three-eighths of aninch is necessary between the knuckle and. the lock to obtain satisfactory locking? In such couplers thereha-s been approximately three-,fourths ofan inch free slack in` the contour. Therefore, the. knuckle maybe rotatedrearwardly and take up the one-fourth n to three-eighths inch clearance between the knuckle. tail and the inner .bearing surfacev of the coupler head topermit the lock .to drop in the iocked position;

In thestandard tightlockicoupler the knuckleVv thickness is the same as the opening in the contour and there hasbeen .no clearance between the knuckle'tail andthe side wall ofthe coupler head. IIhus the clearance between the knuckle and the lock. in the tightlock coupler when provided with verticallocking faces must be obtained by reducing the thickness of the lock or the knuckle tail which in turn loosens the contour. About one-half of the clearance between the knuckle and the lock is reflected in the looset ness in the contour.

As distinguished from the standard typel coupler and the conventional tightlock coupler the present invention provides guiding means for the lock so that with the knuckle in the fully closed position the lock engages an extra steep inclined surface 32 on the knuckle tail and drops to the locked position with only one thirty-second of an inch clearance between the vertical sur- 1 face 3l on the knuckle tail andthe vertical surface il on the lock and the coupler thereby provides a coupler assembly having only one sixtyfourth of an inch slack in the contour.

While the invention has been described with reference to specific structural features of the coupler and with regard to specific angular disposition of a number of faces of the lock and the knuckle, it will be understood that changes may be made in the details as well as the overall organization without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters l Patent is:

l. In a railway car coupler, a coupler head, a knuckle swingably mounted on the coupler head,

a rigid abutment surface on the coupler head at the knuckle side of the coupler, a tail portion on said knuckle adapted to engage said abutment surface in the closed position of the knuckle, a lock bearingvface on the knuckle tail portion arranged in a substantially vertical plane, a flat inclined surface on theknuckle tail portion above and sloping away from an upper end of thelock bearing face at an'angle of approximately twenty degrees, a second Vsubstantially flat vsurface on the knuckle tail portion above the first inclined surface merging with an upper end thereof and sloping awayfrom the lock bearing face at an angle of approximately fifty degrees, a lock y mounted for vertical movements in the coupler head, a knuckle bearing face on the lock arranged in a substantially vertical plane, an arcuate ing not more than .one thirty-second pf an inch greater than similar horizontal collective dimensionsfof the knuckle tail portion and the lock.

t 2. `Infa railway car coupler, a coupler head, a rigid abutment surface on the coupler head at the .knuckle sidev thereof, a knuckle swingably mounted on .the coupler head, a tail'von said .knuckle for :engaging saidabutment surfacel in the closed.. position of the knuckle, a lock bearingface on the knuckle tail arranged in a subf stantially vertical plane, aL dat inclined surface on'the knuckle tail portion` sloping upwardly from an uppervend of and away from the lock bearingface, asecond flat surface on the knuckle tail portion merging with an upper end of the nrst inclined surface and sloping away from the lock bearing face at a greater angle than the inclination of the first inclined surface, a lock mounted for vertical movements in the coupler head, a knuckle bearing face on the lock arranged c in a substantially vertical plane, a corner on the lock at the lower end of said knuckle bearing face, said lock being supported on the knuckle tail when the knuckle is in open position, guide means at the knuckle side of the lock engaged by the lock during movement of the knuckle towards the closed position, said guide means being so located that the corner on the lock is in vertical alignment with said first inclined surface when Athe knuckle tail engages said abutment surface, a guide wall at a guard arm side of the lock, and the horizontal distance between said abutment surfaceand said guide wall being approximately one thirty-second of an inch greater than similar horizontal collective dimen sions of the knuckle tail and the lock.

3. In a railway car coupler, a coupler head, a.. non-yieldable abutment on the coupler head atA the knuckle side of the coupler, a knuckle swingably mounted on the coupler head, a tail on said knuckle having a bearing surface for contacting said abutment in the closed position of the knuckle, a lock mounted for vertical movements in the coupler head, a knuckle bearing face on the lock arranged in a substantially vertical plane, a corner on the lock at the lower end of said knuckle bearing face, means including a horizontal surface on the knuckle tail supporting the lock in a raised position when theknuckle is in an open position, a lock bearing 'face on the knuckle tail arranged in a substantially vertical plane, an inclined surface on the knuckle tail sloping downwardly towards the lock bearing face from said horizontal surface, a flat inclined surface on the knuckle tail sloping downwardly from a lower end of the iirst inclined surface, a :dat inclined surface on the knuckle tail sloping downwardly from the lower end of the second inclined surface and merging with an upper end of the lock bearing face, guide means engaged by the lock during movement of the n knuckle towardsl the closed position, said guide means being so located that said corner of the lock moves downwardly into engagement with said third inclined surface when the bearing surface on the knuckle tail contacts said abutment, a lock bearing wall at a guard arm side of the lock, and the horizontal distance between said abutment and said lock bearing wall being not more than a thirty second of an inch greater than similar horizontal collective dimensions of the knuckle tail portion and the lock.

4. In a knuckle for a railway car coupler, said knuckle having a knuckle pin opening therein, a tail portion on the knuckle, a lock bearing face on the knuckletail portion arrangedsubstantially parallel to the axis of the knuckle pin opening and in a substantially vertical plane when the knuckle is mounted on a coupler head, a iiat surface on the knuckle tail portion above the lock bearing face merging with the upper end there- -of and sloping away from the plane of the lock bearing face at an angle of approximately twenty :degrees with respect thereto, and a second flat .inclined surface on the knuckle tail portion above the first inclined surface merging with an upper -end thereof and sloping away from the lock bearing face at an angle of approximately fifty degrees with respect to the lock bearing face.

f5. In a knuckle for a railway car coupler, said knuckle having a knuckle pin opening therein, a tail on the knuckle,v a lock bearing face on aI lateral portion of the knuckle tail arranged substantially parallel to the axis of the knuckle pin opening and in a substantially vertical plane when the knuckle is mounted on a coupler head, a flat inclined surface on the knuckle tail above the lock bearing face merging with an upper end thereof and sloping away from the plane of the lock bearing face at a relatively steep angle, a second inclined surface on the knuckle tail above the first inclined surface merging with an upper end thereof and sloping away from the lock bearing face at an angle which is less than the slope angle of the first inclined surface.

5 HARRY H. WOLFE.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,932,440 Bazeley Oct. 31, 1933 2,178,062 Bazeley Oct. 31, 1939 2,354,271 Metzger July 25, 1944 2,361,850 Kinne Oct. 31, 1944 2,408,653 Kinne Oct. 1, 1946

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