A Protective Cover for kallway Detonator
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 1st July, 1898-Accepted. 6th Aug., 1898
A Protective Cover for kallway Detonator
We, FILIPP HESS and JULIUS ZIGALL, both of VI. Getraidemarkt 9, Vienna,
Austria, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
The railway detonator signals which have been used hitherto have the disadvan-
tage that when they are exploded by passage of a train they are much broken, and
the immediate neighbourhood of their position (even to a distance of 40 metres) is
liable to be damaged by the scattered fragments.
By this invention the scattering of the fragments is prevented without diminish-
ing appreciably the noise of the signal.
For this purpose, there is fastened to the rail, together with the detonator signal,
a cover made of a material sufficiently strong and tough to withstand the pressure
of the exploding signal so that when the signal is exploded by passage of a train its
fragments are retained and the risk of damage to the surroundings is minimised.
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of the cover with the signal in position; Fig. 2 is
a transverse section. Fig. 3 is a plan looking from below; Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 are
various views of the cover; Fig. 9 is a plan and Figs. 10 and 11 are side and end
view of the bottom piece of the cover, and Figs. 12 to 16 shew modifications.
The cover consists of an upper part a shewn in Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7 in which is
fixed a bottom piece shewn in Figs. 9, 10 and 11.
On the top of the cover is a recess c with or without a pressure pin d, to be pressed
by the locomotive wheel on to the detonator signal e lying below and so insure the
explosion thereof. If necessary the outer cover may be strengthened by an inner
cover f. The ends of the cover a are bent down and served to fix the bottom
piece b.
The sides of the cover are corrugated as may be necessary partly to facilitate the
stamping of the cover in one piece and partly to impart sufficient resistance to it by
making it somewhat yielding, it may have slits g g Fig. 14 or openings h h Figs. 15
and 16 which may be closed, if necessary with a movable or fixed flap or-cover i..
The top of the cover may have escaped openings k, Figs. 12 and 13, for relieving
the pressure of the explosion.
The surface of the cover may be smooth or may be provided with one or more trans-
verse furrow shaped depressions 1, Figs. 12 and 13.
The bottom piece b consists of a plate of the form shewn in Figs. 9, 10 and 11 bent
upwards at each end so that the flanges thus formed engage with the downward bent
ends of the upper part of the cover which is thus united with the bottom piece as
shewn in Fig. 1.
In the middle of the bottom piece there is an opening n of the form shewn in
Fig. 9, or of similar form, through which the detonator signal e can be thrust,
while it is being held by the spring clip o, and then turned through one quarter
round, so as to be held to the bottom piece, and the whole may be fastened by
the spring clip o to the rail head.

page_text: Near each end of the bottom piece b are corrugations p, Figs. 9 and 10 between
which and the top cover are inserted layers q of resistant tough and elastic material
such as woven or knitted fabric, leather, caoutchouc, cork, thread, wire gauze or the
like; the material may be cemented or otherwise fastened on to either the top cover
or the bottom piece.
This resistant material is for the purpose of confining those fragments of the
detonator signal which are scattered in the direction of the rails. Such fragments as
are scattered sideways are directed towards the ground by the side of the cover, while
those which are directed upwards are stopped by the top of the cover, thus all the
fragments are rendered harmless.
The protective cover is made in the manner above described on the one hand, to
enable it to be fastened on the rail together with the detonator signal, without
further trouble than is necessary to secure the operation of both cover and signal, on
the other hand to prevent the wheel of the locomotive from displacing the protecting
cover and the signal from the operative position.
The cover may be encased entirely or partly in some woven fabric, leather, gauze,
thread, caoutchouc or the like in order to prevent its particles from being violently
projected in the event of its being shattered by the explosion of the signal; it may
also be entirely or partly padded with such material, although this precaution is
generally unnecessary when a similar material is used in the construction of the
cover.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is
A protective cover for preventing the scattering of the fragments of a railway
detonator signal substantially as described with reference to the accompanying
drawings.
D
1
CT 1
1000
ABEL & IMRAY.
Agents for the Applicants.