Improvements in Railroad Gates.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Sept., 1893-Accepted, 14th Oct., 1893
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Railroad Gates.
I, JAMES HENRY FITZGERALD, of Winston, Forsyth County, North Carolina,
United States of America, Contractor and Builder, 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:-
This invention relates to certain improvements in automatic railway crossings.
The object of the invention is to provide an improved automatic railroad
crossing gate, exceedingly cheap, simple and durable in construction and
composed of a minimum number of parts, and which will be automatically operated
by passing trains.
The invention consists in certain novel features of construction, and in combi-
nations of parts, more fully described hereinafter and particularly pointed out in the
claims.
Referring to the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a portion of a railroad track, and also
showing my improved gates located on each side of the track, the tripping devices
being also shown extending up beside the rails.
Figure 2 is a sectional view taken in a plane extending longitudinally of the
track showing the operating mechanism controlling the gates.
Figure 3 is a cross sectional view taken in the plane of the lines x-x
Figure 2.
Figure 4 is a cross sectional view taken in the plane of the line y-y
Figure 2.
In the drawings the reference letter a, indicates a railroad track. The reference
letter b, indicates a mast gate located beside the track so as to be capable of
swinging across a street or road leading over the track. These mast gates are
suitably located on opposite sides of the track, and if the road or street is very
wide two gates are employed to close the same. Each gate is provided with
a counterweighted end, to assist its movement and each gate is mounted on a
shaft d, passing through and journalled in the supports f, extending up beside the
track. Between the supports, each shaft d is provided with a pulley or sheave e.
The devices for operating these gates are located along the tracks a suitable
distance from the crossing and the gate. These devices preferably consist of
horizontal shafts g, journalled in suitable bearings beneath the tracks, and each
shaft is provided with an upwardly extending arm or trip h. Each arm or trip h,
extends up through a suitable slot or opening and beside a rail, so that the passing
wheels will depress the trip or arm and thereby swing the shaft. It is not necessary
that the arm h, be very long but only that it should be long enough to be engaged
by the wheel or the flange thereof so as to rock the shaft g. Suitable casings can
be provided in which to enclose the shaft g, and attachments, and so as to enclose,
as it were, the slot, through which the arm h, extends. The ends of the shaft
which extend beyond the track are provided with the segments n, located on their
under sides. Suitable flexible connections i, are secured on these segments n, and.
said connections extend along beside the track through suitable casings, and over
the pulleys jk, up to and around the pulleys e, on the gate shaft d, the connection i,
being wound on the pulleys, in the same direction so that the mast gates will be
always swung by said connection in the same direction, and so that the shafts and
their segments will swing the gates only when operated by trains moving towards
the gates or street crossings. It should also be observed that shaft g, is connected
with both the gates on the opposite sides of the track, that is, each shaft 9, usually
has two of the segments located on opposite sides of the track.
g,

page_text: It should also be observed that the pulleys over which the connections i pass are
located in the casing in which said connections are operated.
The two shafts g, on opposite sides of the crossing are connected by the
connections m, passing through the boxing or enclosure in which the connection i
moves and passing over the pulleys j, k, and at its ends being secured to the
segments n. The object of this connection is to connect the two tripping devices
and the gate so that they will always operate together and in unity, and thereby
avoid accident and trouble.
If desired the shafts g, can be provided with downwardly extending arms n¹,
connected with dash pots n", which prevents the parts returning to their normal
positions too suddenly, but will permit them to return slowly."
The operation of the apparatus is obvious. A train approaching the gate from
either direction strikes the arm, and thereby swings the shaft g, so that the
segments n, are swung away from the gate, thereby drawing the connections i away
from the gates and rotating the shafts d in a direction to swing the gates down to a
horizontal position. When the train has passed over these tripping devices, the
gates slowly return to their normal positions by reason of the weights c, and by
reason of the weight of the segments, said segments acting as counterweights of the
shaft g.
The parts of the gate are so constructed that they do not immediately return to
their normal position but remain in their closed positions for some little time.
This is accomplished by the employment of the dash pot or cylinder piston before
mentioned, which prevents the parts returning rapidly but only permits them to
return slowly to their positions so that the gates will not rise until the train has
passed the crossing.
To avoid all danger of persons being injured by the gates closing down on them,
I can provide the gates with the series of loose weighted hangers & shown in
Figure 5. The gates in this case will be mounted such a distance above the road
surface as not to lower onto pedestrians or strike passing persons or animals and
give due warning and yet permit passage under the gates. This will avoid the
danger of vehicles being shut in on the tracks.
It is evident that various changes might be made in the forms, constructions and
arrangements of the parts described, without departing from the spirit and scope of
my invention, hence I do not wish to limit myself to the exact construction herein
set forth, but consider myself entitled to all such changes as fall within the spirit
and scope of my invention.
It should be noted that the rock shafts carrying the trips can be located any
desired distance from the gates, also that where a number of parallel tracks are
located together the rock shafts can be continued under all the tracks, and provided
with an upwardly extending arm for each track.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The herein described automatic railroad crossing gate.
2. The swinging mast gate provided with the loosely arranged flexible hangers,
substantially as described.
3. The combination with the shafts having the upwardly extending arins and the
segments of the mast gates mounted on shafts having pulleys and the flexible
connection passing from said segments to said pullies as and for the purposes set
forth.
4. The combination of the gate, the shafts having the arm to be engaged by the
wheels, flexible connections from said shafts to said gates to swing the gates with
the shafts, and flexible connections uniting the two shafts so that they swing
together.
5. The combination of the mast gate mounted on a horizontal shaft, supports
for said shaft, a pulley on said shaft, a horizontal rock shaft mounted beneath the

page_text: track having an upwardly extending arm, and the outwardly extending segment,
and a flexible connection secured on said segment, and wound on said pulley of the
gate shaft.
6. The combination of the mast gate provided with a shaft mounted in suitable
bearings, a shaft mounted beneath the track arranged to be rocked by passing
trains, and having a downwardly extending segment connected by a flexible
connection with the segment of the mast gate, substantially as described.
Dated this 8th day of September 1893.
J. H. FITZGERALD,
By L. W., per F. B.