Patent ID: 8438711
Filing Date: 2013-05-14
Classification: A46B,B23P,B25B,E01H,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A tool for removing sweeper bristles from a railway track broom, the tool comprising: a tube member having an outer diameter that is slightly smaller than an inner diameter of a sweeper bristle gripped onto a nipple element such that at least a portion of the tube member can be inserted into the sweeper bristle, wherein two or more slits that extend longitudinally along the tube member split a front portion of the tube member into a plurality of flexible prongs each having one or more outward-facing gripping elements near its tip, the gripping elements being adapted to bite into an inner wall of the sweeper bristle when said flexible prongs are bent outwards; a plunger element, located inside the tube member, that, when propelled forward into a front end of the tube member, causes the flexible prongs to substantially expand at least part of the front portion of the tube member, thereby loosening the sweeper bristle's grip on the nipple element; a hydraulic assembly coupling the plunger element to a hydraulic pressure source, the hydraulic assembly further comprising a trigger mechanism that controls a supply of hydraulic pressure to propel the plunger element; and a handle assembly attached to a rear portion of the tube member.