Improvements in Railroad Sleepers.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 31st Dec., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 29th July, 1896-Accepted, 29th Aug., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Railroad Sleepers.
I, PERCY RICHARD JULIUS WILLIS, of 55 Chancery Lane, in the County of
London, Manager, do hereby declare the nature of this invention (a communication
to me from abroad by Otis Thomas Bedell, of Cairo, Green County, New York
State, U.S.A., Inventor) to be as follows:-
The invention relates to improvements in metallic railroad sleepers.
The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of metal
railroad sleepers and to provide one with the necessary elasticity, with great
strength and durability, which will prevent rails from spreading, sinking or
otherwise becoming displaced.
.
Another object of the invention is to enable rails to be quickly mounted in
position on and readily removed from the railroad sleepers, and to dispense with
the ordinary form of spikes in the attachment of the rails.
Sleepers made in accordance with this invention are made of metal, and have a
borizontal top provided with depending sides, thus forming, in section, three sides
of a square.
Each of the sides has notches or cut away portions to prevent
longitudinal movement of the sleepers. A ridge extends along the sleeper midway
its width and has breaks or openings to receive the rails.. The inner end of the rib
near each end of the sleeper is recessed to conform to the configuration of the
outer portion of the bottom flange of the rail and to interlock therewith'; and the
ends of the central portion of the rib are provided with horizontal slots to receive
a clamp. This clamp is approximately T-shaped, and, when in position, has one of
its flanges inserted in the horizontal slots of the rib and the other resting upon the
lower Hange of the rail. The clamp can be secured by bolts or the like passed
through it and the upper face of sleeper. Two corners of the clamp are
preferably bent downwards over the sides of the sleeper to prevent side movement
of the clamp.
Where the rails join the sleepers are wider and have two ribs; the clamp being
correspondingly wide to secure the end of each of the abutting rails.
Instead of fish-plates and bolts, a key is employed; and it consists of a
bar, of convenient length, having its ends bent at right-angles to pass through
apertures in the abutting rails and a plate placed horizontally against the web of
the rails. The ends of the key are secured by split keys or pins passed through
apertures therein.
The sleepers may be filled with wood or any other suitable substance or material
if desired.
Dated this 31st day of December 1895.

page_text: I, PERCY RICHARD JULICS WILLIS, of 55 Chancery Lane, in the County of
London, Manager, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, (a communication
to me from abroad by Otis Thomas Bedell of Cairo, Green County, New York
State, U.S.A., Inventor,) and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of metallic
sleepers and to provide one which will possess the necessary elasticity with great
strength and durability, and which will prevent rails from spreading, sinking, or
otherwise becoming displaced.
Another object of the invention is to enable rails to be quickly mounted in
position on and readily removed from the railroad sleepers, and to dispense with
the ordinary form of spikes in the attachment of the rails.
The inventión consists in the construction and novel combination and arrange-
ment of parts, hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings,
and pointed out in the claim hereto annexed.
In the drawings,
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a track provided with sleepers
constructed in accordance with this invention.
Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken longitudinally of a sleeper.
Fig. 3 is a similar view taken transversely of the sleeper.
Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of one of the sleepers.
Fig. 5 is a similar view of one of the removable rail engaging clamping keys.
Fig. 6 is a horizontal sectional view illustrating the manner of connecting the
ends of the rails on a double ribbed sleeper.
Like numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the
drawings.
1 designates a hollow metallic sleeper composed of similar depending vertically
disposed sides 2 and a horizontal top 3, and designed to be embedded in the road
bed and to be filled with the material thereof. The sleeper is provided in its sides
at the lower edge's thereof with curved notches or recesses 4, which enable the sides
to take a firm hold on the road bed and to be securely held against longitudinal
shifting, and the top of the sleeper is provided with perforations receiving
depending elongated pins, bolts or other fastening devices 5, which are located
between the sides 2 and which prevent the ballast or material of which the road
bed is constructed from shifting, and this will be found especially advantageous at
curves and other places where there is a greater liability of such shifting. The
notched or recessed sides of the sleepers may be dispensed with when the sleepers
are employed on iron or wooden road beds, such as trestles, bridges, and the like,
and they will be bolted or otherwise secured to the iron or woodwork.
On the top of the sleeper is located a longitudinal rib 6, provided with breaks or
openings to receive rails 7. The end portions 8 of the ribs have their inner
terminals recessed or bevelled to conform to the configuration of the outer portion
of the bottom flange of the rail and to interlock therewith, and the central portion
of the rib has its terminals located a short distance from the inner portion of the
bottom flange of each rail to provide an intervening space. The ends of the inner
portions 9 of the rib are provided with longitudinal slots 10, adapted to receive
rail engaging keys 11, substantially T-shaped in cross section and composed of a
lower block 12 and an upper portion or plate 13. The lower portion or block 12 is
wedged between the central portion of the rib and the adjacent edge of the bottom
flange of the rail, and it may be either wedge shaped or rectangular, and the upper
portion or plate which may be either constructed integral with or separate from the

page_text: block, projects laterally therefrom and has one edge or side portion arranged in
the slot 10 and the other edge overlapping the inner portion of the bottom flange of
the rail and firmly clamping the same in proper position. When the plate is con-
structed separate from the block, it is secured thereto by suitable fastening devices.
The outer portion of the bottom flange of the rail is firmly interlocked with the
outer portion of the rib, and the inner portion of the bottom flange of the rail is
engaged by the clamping key, and the rail is firmly held in proper position by the
clamping key on the upper face of the sleeper and cannot move outwards thereon or
sink into the sleeper.
The rail engaging key is detachably secured to the sleeper and held against
accidental displacement by a removable pin 14, located at one end of the plate and
arranged in a perforation thereof and disposed at one side of the central portion of
the rib. The other end of the plate is provided with a stop 14, which is formed
by bending the corner of the plate up or down, it being preferable to bend it down
as shewn in the drawings. By removing the pin 14 the key may be readily
detached, which will leave the rail free and the latter may be shifted or removed.
A space between the end and central portions of the rib is sufficient to permit a
curved rail to be readily adjusted in its proper position.
At suitable intervals, preferably at the ends of the rails, the sleepers are provided
with a pair of ribs, and the rail engaging keys are correspondingly increased in
length, as shewn at 16, and engage the adjacent ends of both rails.
The rails are connected without the use of the ordinary bolts and nuts by means
of a substantially rectangular clip. 15, consisting of a stem arranged on the inner
faces of the webs of the rails and a pair of arms extending outward through
perforations or openings 16* and provided with eyes. The arms extend through
perforation in a plate 17 and receive split keys 18, and are oval-shaped in cross
section similar to the ordinary bolts usually employed at rail joints. The
openings or perforations of the rails and the plate are slightly elongated to permit
the creeping of the rails. It will be seen that the rails are firmly secured in
proper position on the sleepers and are prevented from spreading or sinking in the
ties, and that they may be quickly mounted on and readily removed from the
sleepers. It will also be apparent that the ordinary form of spikes and their
corresponding perforations are dispensed with and that nuts are not employed at
the rail-joints.
The sleepers may if desired, be filled with wood or any other suitable substance
or material, and I desire it to be understood that changes in the form, proportion,
and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from
the principle or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention, such as
constructing the rib of the sleeper either integral or separate from the body portion
of the sleeper.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is :-
The combination of a sleeper provided with a rib having rail openings or spaces,
the outer portions of the rib being provided with recesses to conform to the
configuration of and to interlock with the rails, and the inner portion of the rib
being provided at its ends with slots, the substantially T-shaped keys consisting of
a bottom portion to be interposed between the central portion of the rib and a rail,
and a top portion or plate projecting laterally from the bottom portion and fitting
in the adjacent slot of the rib and adapted to extend over the bottom flange of a
rail, and means for locking the keys in position, substantially as described.
Dated this 28th dor of Tul 1906
PERCY R. J. WILLIS,
Applicant.