US3396671A - Adjustable tamper blade assembly - Google Patents

Description

1968 w. w. ROSEBERRY 3,396,671

ADJUSTABLE TAMPER BLADE ASSEMBLY Filed Feb. 21, 1966 VIII/It United States Patent 3,396,671 ADJUSTABLE TAMPER BLADE ASSEMBLY Wilmer W. Roseberry, Ludington, Mich, assignor to Jackson Vibrators, Inc., Ludington, Mich, a corporation of Illinois Filed Feb. 21, 1966, Ser. No. 529,113 2 Claims. (Cl. 104-13) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A railroad ballast tamping blade assembly in which the work is done by adjustably mounted blades that can be shifted to compensate for wear erosion without varying the required tip angles. The blades are formed so that the step configuration of the blades is maintained through the full range of adjustment.

This invention relates generally to railroad track ballast tamping machines and more particularly concerns tamping blades for such machines.

Vibratory ballast tamping involves vibrating a blade at high speed and under considerable force, lowering the vibrating blade into the ballast, and guiding the blade so that the ballast material supporting and holding the track ties is tamped, i.e., the particulate matter making up the ballast is positioned and tightly interfitted to provide a solid base for each tie. It is readily apparent that under such operating conditions tamping blades quickly wear. Indeed, the types of blades with which the invention is primarily concerned erode sufiiciently after three to five days use to become inefiicient and virtually inoperable.

Therefore, it is the primary aim of the invention to provide tamping blades which can be adjusted to compensate for wear erosion. More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide blades of the above kind which maintain the desired blade tip configuration through the full range of wear compensating adjustment.

It is also an object to provide blades as characterized above which are not only economical to manufacture but particularly economical to use since each blade has a useful life exceeding that of several successively used conventional blades.

Another object is to provide blades of the above type which can be easily adjusted in the field with simple tools. A related object is to provide blades of this character which can be maintained in the most efiicient operating condition by making adjustments that preserve the original blade tip configuration.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary perspective showing a prior art blade assembly of the type with which the present invention is concerned;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation of the assembly appearing in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective of a blade assembly embodying the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side elevation of the assembly shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a slightly enlarged section taken approximately along the line 5-5 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective of another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 7 is a side elevation of the embodiment appearing in FIG. 6; and

FIG. 8 is a slightly enlarged section taken approximately along the line 88 in FIG. 6.

While the invention will be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments, it will be under- 'ice stood that I do not intend to limit the invention to those embodiments. On the contrary, I intend to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Turning first to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a typical tamping blade assembly 10 of the type used wit-h tamping machines as illustrated and described in US. Patent No. 3,119,346, issued Ian. 28, 1964. The assembly 10 includes a support bracket 11, adapted to be rigidly secured to a vibration motor, and a pair of tamping blades 12. The blades 12 are locked by bolts 13 to a mounting plate 14 forming part of the support bracket 11.

To obtain proper blade movement into the ballast when tamping, the lower ends of the blades 12 are bent to define working tips 15 that are disposed at an angle with respect to the substantially vertical disposition of the support bracket 11 (see FIG. 2). As a result, when the vibrating blade assembly 10 is lowered into the ballast, the bent tips 15 tend to cam the blades 12 toward the left in FIG. 2 so that the blades work under the tie being tamped. Also, the working tips 15 of the blades 12 have a step configuration defined by a notch 16 in theend of each blade (see FIG. 1). As a result of this notched configuration, a camming force is developed as the vibrated blade assembly 10 is lowered into the ballast which tends to cause the blades 12 to work toward the left as seen in FIG. 1 so that the blades tilt toward and under the track rails.

Therefore, because of the bent blade tips 15 and their stepped configuration, the tamping blades tend to swing toward the rails and to move under the tie being tamped so as to insure good tamping action at the most critical location, that portion of the ballast beneath the intersection of the tie and the rail which it supports. As mentioned above, blades like the blades 12 wear away after only a few days use. The greatest wear takes place, of course, at the working tips 15 and this Wear erosion quickly destroys the step configuration shown in FIG. 1 and the tip angles shown in FIG. 2. This makes the blades unusable and, under prior practices, worn blades were either simply replaced or new tips welded on so as to obtain an additional period of blade use.

In accordance with the invention, a blade assembly 20 is provided in which elongated blades 21 can be adjusted to compensate for wear erosion while maintaining the desirable working tip angle and step configuration. The assembly 20 includes a support bracket 22 intended to hang in a generally vertical plane when secured in working relationship to a vibration motor. The blades 21 have an arcuate configuration so that the lower ends, which define working tips 23, are disposed at the proper angle with respect to the generally vertical plane of the support bracket 22. For adjustment, the blades 21 are releasably locked on the bracket 22 and are supported for movement, when unlocked, along the arcs defined by the blades.

In the FIGS. 3-5 embodiment, the bracket 22 includes a mounting plate 24 shaped to conform with the blades 21, and the blades have slots 25 that receive pairs of bolts 26 passing through holes in clamp blocks 27 and in the mounting plate 24. By loosening the bolts 26, the blades 21 are freed for movement through a range permitted by the slots 25. In making wear erosion compensating adjustments, the blades 21 are adjusted downwardly along their own arcs and hence the angles of the blade tips 23 remain constant so long as the blades are moved downwardly in increments to compensate for the amount of blade material worn away.

The blades 21 also have notches 28 in their working tips 23 so as to define the desired step configuration. To maintain this configuration after wear erosion, the blades 21 have bands 29 of reduced cross section (see FIG. extending longitudinally of the blades from the notches 28. In operation, the thinner bands 29 tend to wear through more rapidly than the thicker edge portions of the blade tips. Thus, the bands 29 tend to wear at about the same rate as the projecting fingers on either side of the blade notches 28 which, because of their outthrust configuration, absorb most of the wearing action encountered by the blades 21. As a result, the lower ends of the blades 21 wear upwardly in roughly the same stepped configuration in which they were originally formed.

In the blade assembly 30 embodiment shown in FIGS. 6-8, an arcuate blade 31 is releasably locked on a mounting plate 32 constituting part of a support bracket 33. The blade 31 is fitted into a groove 34, formed in the plate 32, which guides the blade 31 for movement in its own are, and locking is obtained by bolts 35 which draw a clamp block 36 against the blade. Longitudinal adjustment of the blade 31 compensates for wear and keeps the lower end of the blade, defining a blade working tip 37, at the proper angle in the same manner as described above in connection with the FIGS. 3-5 embodiment.

To maintain the desired step configuration in the working tip 37 of the blade 31, the blade 31 is formed of two adjacent members 38 and 39 with the members being relatively movable. Each of the members 38, 39 have rounded lower ends (see FIG. 8) defining the step configuration of the working tip 37. This configuration is maintainable by selective relative adjustment of the members 38, 39 as the lower ends of these members are eroded.

It can be readily seen that the blade assemblies 20, 30 embodying the invention are well suited for economical large scale production. The assemblies are particularly economical to use since wear erosion can be compensated for, and each blade has a useful life exceeding that of several successively used conventional blades of the type shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Since only conventional bolts are manipulated, blade adjustment can be accomplished in the field with readily available tools.

It will also be appreciated that the adjustable blades of the invention permit tamping efliciency to be maximized since frequent blade adjustments can keep the blade tips at the proper angle and in the proper relationship with their vibration motor to promote effective tamping.

I claim as my invention:

1. A tamper blade assembly for ballast tamping comprising, in combination, a blade support bracket, an elongated tamping blade releasably locked on said bracket, said blade having an arcuate configuration so that one end of the blade defines a working tip that is disposed at an angle with respect to said bracket, said blade being supported on said bracket for movement, when unlocked, along the arc defined by the blade so that wear erosion of said tip can be compensated for by unlocking, moving and again locking the blade, said working tip end of the blade having a step configuration defined by a notch in the end of the blade, and said blade having a band of reduced cross section extending longitudinally from said notch so that the step configuration is maintained after wear erosion by said band wearing away at about the same rate as the steps of the working tip.

2. A tamper blade assembly for ballast tamping comprising, in combination, a blade support bracket, an elongated tampin'g blade releasably locked on said bracket, said blade having an arcuate configuration so that one end of the blade defines a working tip that is disposed at an angle with respect to said bracket, said blade being supported on said bracket for movement, when unlocked, along the arc defined by the blade so that wear erosion of said tip can be compensated for by unlocking, moving and again locking the blade, said blade being formed of two adjacent and abutting members being relatively movable when the blade is unlocked, each of said members having rounded ends defining together a step configuration at said working tip, said step configuration being maintainable by selective adjustment of said members.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 492,283 2/ 1893 Gladney et a1. 172772 662,081 11/ 1900 Murphree 172744 836,986 11/1906 McManmon l7277l 1,017,105 2/1912 Lupton 172761 1,191,793 7/1916 Johnston 172771 1,298,837 4/1919 Ware 172-772 2,137,842 11/1938 Jackson 10413 2,892,417 6/ 1959 Jackson 104-13 2,934,026 4/ 1960 Beierlein 104-13 DRAYTON E. HOFFMAN, Primary Examiner.

R. A. BERTSCH, Assistant Examiner.

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