Improvements in the Permanent Way of Railways.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Oct., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 15th June, 1893-Accepted, 19th Aug., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Permanent Way of Railways.
I THORNTON EUGENE WEBSTER FAY of 820 North Fifth Street, Philadelphia
State of Pennsylvania, United States of America, Retired Merchant, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:
My invention relates to a fastening, which is adapted to hold the rails of a
railway so that they cannot possibly spread or move laterally, which holds them in
such a manner that they cannot flatten under heavy pressure, which is adapted to
form an efficient joint and do away with the usual fish plates and bolts, and which,
may be also applied to the joints of movable switch rails.
The fastening consists of a flat plate of wrought iron or material which is long
enough to extend across a pair of rails and has ribs near its ends between which
the flanges of the rails are received. These ribs are struck up from the body of
the plate and are arranged in pairs and the distance between the ribs of each pair
is such that an ordinary rail flange will fit snugly between them.
Between the ribs the plate is perforated so that the spikes, by means of which
the rails are secured to the sleeper, may be driven through the perforations and
into the sleeper. The plates are secured to the upper surface of the sleeper and
are adapted to receive the rails in the manner described, and usually a fastening
plate is arranged at the ends of the rails and at a point near the middle of the
rails, but on a curve or in any place where there is great strain, the number
of fastening plates may be increased. The abutting ends of the rails are placed
a little distance apart, so as to provide for the expansion and contraction of the
rails under the changes of temperature.
The ribs at each end of the plate may be placed at a slight angle to each
other that is one rib may be curved outward and the other curved inward so that
they may receive the ends of converging rails, and the plate is perforated so that
a movable rail may be pivoted between the ribs if necessary, or the plate may have
one straight rib at each end, and the other rib curved slightly to provide for the
movement of an ordinary switch rail.
In a modified form of the plate adapted to extend between two movable switch
rails, the plate has near each end a single rib, which is adapted to press against
the inner flange of a rail, and adjacent to each rib there is a curved slot adapted
to receive a bolt which extends upward through the plate and the flange of the
switch rail, and which thus permits a movement of the rail in relation to the plate.
The outer ends of the plate and the outer flanges of the rails are pivoted together
by means of bolts, which project through perforations in the plate, and the heads
of both the bolts are let into the bottom of the plate so that the plate may slide
smoothly over the sleepers which support it.
The plate will brace the two rails and the slots and bolts will permit the rails to
swing in different circles. It will be understood that the ribs which clasp the rail
flanges may be shaped to fit any kind of a rail joint and that the rails will be held
so that they cannot possibly spread but they may have the necessary endwise
movement.
11
201 1
1000

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Permanent Way of Railways.
1, THORNTON EUGENE WEBSTER FAY of 820 North Fifth Street, Philadelphia
in the County of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, United States of America
Retired Merchant, 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 object of my invention is to produce a simple, efficient, durable, and inex-
pensive, rail fastening which is adapted to hold railway rails so that they cannot
possibly spread or move laterally and in such a manner that they cannot flatten
under heavy pressure, which is adapted to form an efficient joint and to obviate
the necessity of employing the usual fish plates and bolts, and which may be also
applied to the joints of movable switch rails.
To this end my invention consists in a rail fastening, the construction of which
will be hereinafter described and claimed.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this
Specification, in which similar figures of reference indicate corresponding parts in
all the views.
Figure 1 is a plan view of a railway track provided with my improved rail
fastening.
Figure 2 is a detail perspective view of the fastening.
Figure 3 is a view of a slightly modified form of the fastening, having the
clamping ribs shaped to permit diverging rails to enter between them.
Figure 4 is a view shewing the fastening adapted to receive a switch rail or a
arail which curves from the main rail.
Figure 5 is a detail perspective view of a fastening and brace which is adapted
to connect two movable switch rails, and
Figure 6 is a broken sectional view, shewing the application of a rail to the
fastening plate shewn in Figure 5.
The fastening consists of a flat plate 10 which is preferably made of wrought
iron but may be made of any material and which is long enough to extend across a
pair of rails, the plate having perforations 11 to facilitate its attachment to the
sleeper and having near its ends, ways 12 which are produced between the ribs 13
and which are adapted to receive the flanges of the rails. These ribs 13 are struck
up from the body of the plate and they are arranged in pairs, as shewn, and the
distance between the ribs of each pair is such that an ordinary rail flange will fit
snugly between them. The perforations 11 are also produced in the ways 12
between the ribs 13 so that the spikes by means of which the rails are secured to
the sleepers may be driven through the perforations and into the sleepers. The
plates 10 are secured to the tops of the sleepers 14 and are adapted to receive the
rails 15 in the manner described and usually a fastening plate is arranged at the
ends of the rails and at a point near the middle of the rails, as shewn in Figure 1,
but on a curve or in any place where there is great strain the number of fastening
plates may be increased. The abutting ends of the rails are placed a little distance
apart, as shewn at 16 in Figure 1, so as to provide for the expansion and con-
traction of the rails under the usual changes of temperature.
In Figure 3 the fastening plate is like that described, but the ribs 13 at each end
of the plate are placed at a slight angle to each other, that is one rib curves out-
ward and the other curves inward so that they may receive the ends of converging
rails and the plate is perforated as shewn at 17 so that a movable rail may be
pivoted between the ribs, if necessary. In Figure 4, the plate is shewn with one
straight rib 13 at each end and the other rib is curved slightly to provide for the
movement of an ordinary switch-rail.
As shewn in Figure 5, the modified form of the plate 10% is adapted to extend

page_text: between two movable switch rails, the plate having near each end a rib 13* which
is adapted to press against the inner flange of a rail, and adjacent to each rib is a
curved slot 18 adapted to receive a bolt 18" which extends upward through the
plate and the flange of the switch rail 15ª, as shewn in Figure 6, and which thus
permits a movement of the rail in relation to the plate. The outer ends of the
plate 10 are pivoted to the outer flanges of the rails by means of bolts 19ª which
project through perforations 19 in the plate, and the heads of the bolts 18 and 19"
are both let into the bottom of the plate, so that the plate may slide smoothly over
the sleepers which support it. It will be seen that the plate 10 will brace the two
rails and that the slots 18 and bolts 18" will permit the rails to swing in different
circles. It will be understood that the ribs which clasp the rail flanges may
shaped to fit any kind of a rail-joint, and it will be seen that the rails will be held
so that they cannot possibly spread, but they may have the necessary end-wise
movement.
be
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is-
1. A rail fastening consisting of an oblong flat plate bent up transversely from
its under side at both ends from edge to edge of the plate to form the two pairs of
raised ribs 13, 13, on its upper side and corresponding grooves across its lower side,
flat surfaces for the rail bases being formed between each pair of ribs and provided
with bolt or spike apertures 11 to align those in the rail bases, substantially as
described.
2. As an improved article of manufacture, a rail fastening comprising a plate
having surface ribs near its ends, said ribs being placed at an angle to each other
and adapted to clasp the flanges of the rails, substantially as described.
Dated 13th June 1893.
Dated 13th June 1895
T. E. W. FAY,
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.