Improvements in Splices or Joints for Railway Rails and other Bars.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd July, 1890-Accepted; 23rd Aug., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Splices or Joints for Railway Rails
and other Bars.
A communication from abroad by JAMES. MADISON BRYANT, CHARLES HENRY
ZIMMERMAN, JACOB BECKER, and BENJAMIN FRANKLIN PEABODY, all of Benwood,
County of Marshall, West Virginia, United States of America.
I, ROBERT ALEXANDER SLOAN, of the firm of Sloan and Lloyd Barnes, Castle
Chambers. Castle Street Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster, Patent Agent, 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:
My invention is an improvement in that class of splices which are adapted to
connect the ends of rails, angle or T iron bars and the like, without the use of bolts
or rivets. It is specially designed for and adapted to the joints of railway rails,
although it may be used with other forms such as those of beains.
The invention is shown in the accompanying drawing, in which :-
Figure 1 is a transverse section through the joint.
Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the locking key slightly drawn back.
Figure 3 is a sectional plan of a modification.
Figure 4 is a detail perspective view of the splice bar and one of the main
bars.
Throughout the drawings similar parts are indicated by the same reference letters
or figures. In the drawings, A, A, represent ordinary forms of railway rails. The
webs are slotted out as shown at a, to any desired distance from the ends, and
preferably so as to leave a part of the web above and below, as shown at 1 and 2.
The main splicing piece B is shown in figure 1. It has on one side an outer flange
extending upward and downward, marked d, d. The lower flange is arranged to
bear upon the base of the rail while the upper lies snugly under and bears against
the under side of the head. Next to this flange on the inside is a web, e, fitted exactly
to the slots in the rail ends, that is to say, the vertical depth of the web e, is the same
as the vertical depth of the slot and the length of this web equals the sum of the
lengths of the slots in the two rail ends, or approximately so. In the web e, above
and below, are longitudinal grooves 3, 3. These leave a space in the web e, between
the grooves and the inner face of the flange d, d, of the full depth of the web, and
equal to or a little less than the thickness of the web of the rail.
From this
description of the parts it will be evident that the piece 13 may be inserted into the
slots, when the rails lie in place end to end, by pushing it laterally until the web is
quite through the slot and the flanges d, d, bear against the rail web, the lower resting
upon the base of the rail and the "pper bearing under the rail head or cap. Then the
grooves 3 are outside of the rail web and on the side opposite that of the flanges d, d.
Into the grooves is then inserted the locking piece or key shown in figure 1 and
marked E. This is app: oximately in the shape of an angle iron but has preferably
an obtuse instead of a right angle. It has a flange adapted to rest upon the upper
surface of the base of the rail, and a vertical flange g the upper edge of which bears
under the rail head. It has a longitudinal slot open at one end forming upper and
lower limbs connected at the other end and fitted to slide over the web e in the
grooves 3, as shown in the figures. When the parts described are all in place it will
be seen that the pieces B and E are interlocked and both bear on the base of the rail
and under its head, so that they form a solid support, with a much greater amount of
metal than that which has been cut out of the rails and which may be made practically
equal in strength to that of the solid rail itself. At the same time the pieces are so
nterlocked as to prevent any liability of spreading and they hold the treads of the

page_text: rails perfectly even and prevent any battering of the ends, such as is liable to occur
when the rails are loosely or unevenly held.
The construction admits of any desired length of the splice block B and key E and
the parts preferably are so constructed that the key must be driven in with consider-
able force and binds the parts together firmly and snugly. The key piece is formed
with one or more notches 5 in the edge of the flange which rests on the base of the
rail, and into this a spike is driven which holds it securely in place. No bolts or nuts
are required. The parts B may be formed by rolling in any length and then cutting
into sections suited to each splice. The key piece may also be rolled and cut into
sections and the sections slotted into the form shown. The key piece is longer than
the main splice piece B and its flange may be made the same width as that of the
base of the rail, the key being driven until the notch in the key registers with that of
the rail, and then the spike may be driven through both into the tie or sleeper.
Instead of this, the spike may be driven by the side of the rail base until its over-
lapping head engages with the notch in the key. The flanges d, d, are made slightly
bevelled inwardly and the parts being so proportioned that the key draws the main
splice B laterally, it wedges under the head of the rails and thereby affords a solid
support and renders the whole joint rigid. The construction of the joint heretofore
described allows free contraction and expansion of the rails.
Figures 3 and 4 show a modification adapted to iron bars and beams such as are
used in iron structures of various sorts. In this the slots in the ends of the bars are
not open but are in the form of elongated holes punched in the bars. The main splice,
instead of being formed with a continuous web e, is made with two sections of the
web e fitted to the holes in the ends of the bars or beams, as shown in figure 3. The
key is the same, except that in this form it does not necessarily have a flange. In this
form the splice serves, without the use of bolts, both as a splice and to connect the
parts against longitudinal strain.
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 —
1. In combination with rails or bars having slots in their ends, the laterally inserted
picce B flanged and formed with grooves 3 and fitted to the slots in the rails and a
key piece E having an open slot made through the whole thickness of the key piece
from one end but terminating at a distance from the other end, the said key piece being
fitted to the grooves 3, substantially as described.
2. In combination with railway rails having slots in their ends, the laterally inserted
piece B flanged and formed with grooves 3 and fitted to the slots in the rails, and a
key piece E having a flange adapted to bear upon the upper surface of the base of the
rails and a vertical flange g having an open slot made through the whole thickness 'of
the flange from one end but terminating at a distance from the other end, the said key
piece being fitted to the grooves 3, substantially as described.
Dated this 21st day of Tul. 1900
SLOAN & LLOYD BARNES,
Castle Chambers, 26, Castle Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicant.