USRE4922E - Improvement in railroad-car heaters - Google Patents

Description

UNITED PATENT OFICE.

if.v HENRY ai nonnrsspor BALTIMORE, MARYAND.

rMPR/oyEMENjr l'uuujLRoA'ncAn HSA-reus.

specification-forming' partof LettersvI-itnt dated Mayl2,l18'1; reissue dted"May Q8, 1872.

Specilication describing a new and Improved I Coupling for Steam-Car Heaters, invented by HENRY R. RoBiaINs, of Baltimore, in the county of Baltimore and State of Maryland.

Figure 1 isalongitudinal sectional elevation, and Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional elevation. This invention has for its object to furnish improved apparatus for connectingthesystems of steam-heatin g pipes with which any two cars may be provided, and for disconnecting th'e same, said apparatus being also a conductor of the heating element, and being sufficiently flexible to adapt itself to all the sinuosities and inequalities usually found in railways. Referring to the drawing, and describing first that part of the apparatus which is at-V4 tached to any one car, a is a hollow socket.,l intended to be placed beneath a car-body, near either end thereof', into one end of whichso'ck- -et a tube, b, is fitted, the same being rigidly.

secured to the cla-r in any suitable manner and being connectedvwith an from the stean1-heater above and delivering steam to the socket, and through it to all the rest of the coupling apparatus. Within the socket c a hollowr ball, c, is placed,` having two,

orifices, one of which communicates with the pipe b, and into the other of which a pipe, d, is fitted. The pipe cl extends forward and enters a pipe, e, through. a gland placed at the end of the latter, so as to make a steam-tight joint. A spiral spring is placed inside the pipe e for the purpose of taking up the slack7 that might otherwise occur between the parts, thus accommodating the pipes to the action of the train. At the front end of the pipe e is a socket, f, which ineloses ahollow ball, h, from )Lone side of which a bell-mouthed sleeve, i, pro

jects. A cylindrical bore extends through both theball and sleeve, and communicates with the interior ofthe pipe e. The bell-mouthed sleeve terminates that part of the eouplin g apparatus which .is attached to any one car. Pins project in sufficient numbers radially from the exteriors of both the sleeve and socketf, to which pins are connected the ends of springs k, which tend 4to keep the bell-mouthed sleeve always in line with the pipes in rear of it and iu the proper position to receive the head of the coupling apparatus app'crtaining to another car. K iwoA rings, I, are placed loosely on the outside of the pipe e, which rings are connected by parelbow coming own allel bars m, to the upper one of which a chain, n, is attached, which suspends the pipes to the car and takes their weight off from the central ball. To the side bars m are made fast the 'ends of springso, the other ends of which are fastened to iron stays p that extend downward from the car. tract according to the curvature of the road, permitting the pipes to sway from side toside.

The chain n should 'be of such lengthras to, keep the centralhall h always slightly elevated above 4the endl balls in order to permit the free passage of steam. Waste-ways fitted with cocks should be made thrlough the sockets a,

by which the water lof condensation" may es-4 The corresponding part of thecoupling apparatus that is attached to'another car is' like the one above described,

instead of terminating in a socket, .ends in a hollow spear-head, r, the cyr lindrical portion proper size to enter and fit closely the bore of the sleeve t', while its incline sides a: are made to correspond in shapewith the bell-mouth of said sleeve, thereby forming a steam-tight joint between the'spear-head and bellfmouthed f sleeve when they are'brought together., When thus connected the twopavts oi' the coupling apparatus afford a continuousrpassage for the steam, hot air, hot water, or whatever'heating element may be employed, this mechanism being as well adapted to one as another.

Y The coupling, considered as a whole', is steamtight and suiiiciently iiexible for all ordinary purposes. Its component parts are held to? gether by the car-coupling shown. Any earcoupling, however, may be used that will answer the purpose, though the one here figured is that which I'prefer.

To' supply the' heating materiaiaboilerfznay be placed inthe front car, or thesteammay be taken direct from vthe locomotive-boiler.

I am aware that various devices have been' invented for this purpose, some of which have employed ballandsocket joints in certain ways. Others have used sleeve-pipeI joints with springs, and others again have employed a' bell-mouth socket for coupling; but I do not claim any one' of these special devices as my invention. l l

Having thus described my invention, what The springs o expand creenwith this exception,

-s of which is made of thev .Y li do eleiim as new, and desire to secure by Let ters Patent, isgl. The combinationef three hellend-socket joints with sleeve-pipe jointsregulzbted by heiienl or other suitable springs, and with a belimontlied endspearhead coupling of automatic notion, in the manner shown and'deseribed, for the purpose of securing :ly flexible, durable, and. elastic steamtiglit conduit, with m1 autoinetie eenpling for-the passage of steam between railroad. eers or otilei1 structures which 'nre variable iu their positionsa 2. The arrangement of the epping'ek is onV the pine projecting from the bel1-1nont1ed sleeve 'i and. soeketf7 as ein@ for the purpose specified.

3. iie znmngement ot parts for supporting the steam coupling or pipes, consisting of the device l l m. m, 'the springs o n attached to the curved stays@ p of the draught-compling, and

the chains y12,2111 as herein shown and described,

4. The arrangement of the and bers m, as set forth.

5. The hollowl spear-head, in combination with the yloell1nouth sleeve and the bel-Landsocket joint immediately connected therewith, as :1mi for the purpose described.

4The speer-head, in combination with am; elastic telescopio pipe and 'a hellend-socket pipe e, rings rZ,

joint connect-ed therewith, substantially as` described.

7. The bell-mouth sleeve ywith bail-and socket joint,-in-'eombinetion with the elaetim extensible pipe and a seeoml hellend-socket Jioint, substzmtizilly es iieseribed.

. HENRY ROBBEA- VVilnesses W. H, Hinrwqei, HonT;GiLMoRE.

Images