Improvements in Railways and Railway Cars.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Apr., 1894-Accepted, 19th May, 1894
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Railways and Railway Cars.
We, CHARLES COE. BURTON, Civil Engineer, of Cowper Villa East Rockdale
Avenue, Avondale, Cincinnati, in the County of Hamilton and State of Ohio,
GEORGE MCMURTRY LUDLOW, Manufacturer, of Elgin, in the County of
Kane and State of Illinois, LOUIS EDWARD HOLDEN, Professor, of Beloit, in
the County of Rock and State of Wisconsin, CURTIS GRUBB HUSSEY, Engineer,
of 101 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, in the County of Allegheny and State of
Pennsylvania, and JOHN CHARLES DES GRANGES, Engineer, of 101 Fifth Avenue,
Pittsburgh, in the County of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, all in the
United States of America, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described ard
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to improvements in elevated railway structures and railway
cars, having reference more especially to railway systems in which the cars are
designed to travel at a high rate of speed and where the railway structure is
provided with auxiliary or guide rails to hold the cars from lateral displacement.
In the accompanying drawings illustrating the invention,
Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of one end of a railway car together with
a part of the elevated track structure.
Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a view from beneath of one of the contact wheels shown in Figure 1
with adjacent parts.
Figure 4 is a sectional view of the car and railway structure taken on line 4-4
of Figure 1.
Figure 5 is a side elevation of one of the main supporting wheels of a car with
the side plate thereof removed.
Figure 6 is a sectional view thereof taken on line 6-6 of Figure 5.
Figure 7 is a view in side elevation of the elevated track structure.
Figure 8 is an enlarged sectional view thereof taken on line 8-8 of Figure 7.
Figures 9 and 10 are sectional views taken on lines 9-9 and 10-10 respectively
of Figure 8.
Figure 11 is a side elevation of another form of elevated structure adapted for
carrying two tracks.
Figure 12 is a sectional view of the same taken on line 12-12 of Figure 11.
Referring first to the construction illustrated in Figures 1 to 6 inclusive, the
track structure therein shown embraces two supporting rails A A, two bearing
rails B B of V-shape in cross-section, transverse girders A' which support the
rails A A, and uprights B1 B' which support the rails B B above the rails A.
Referring to the carriage shown in said Figures 1 to 6, C indicates an end
section thereof and D a central section which is pivoted to and suspended between
two similar end sections like that illustrated. The end section C is mounted on
main carrying wheels EE attached to a shaft E¹ and resting on the rails A A,
while the central section D is pivoted to the end sections by means of vertical
pivots FF located one at the top and the other at the bottom of the car (Figure 1),
there being no wheels under the central section.

page_text: GG are inclined guide wheels located at the bottom of the car and extending
beyond the same to engage the bearing rails B B. Said wheels G G are located
one pair in advance and the other pair at the rear of a vertical line passing through
the axes of the wheels E E. The axes of rotation of said bearing wheels are
outwardly and downwardly inclined so that said wheels bear upwardly and
outwardly against the bearing rails.
The rail B is shown as having vertical and horizontal flanges 66 and the bearing
wheels as provided with conical bearing surfaces g g¹ adapted to engage said
flanges. The bearing wheels are shown as being attached to short shafts G¹
mounted in bearings c c on the car. Said bearing wheels arranged as shown, not
only hold the car from lateral deflection but tend to maintain the section C in a
horizontal position by contact with the horizontal flanges of the bearing rails.
The supporting wheels E E are preferably made of large size and of a diameter
approximately equal to the height of the car. To secure a strong and rigid
construction therein the wheel (Figures 5 and 6) consists of a rim e. a hub e¹,
radial spokes e² formed by flat strips of metal arranged with their flat sides at right
angles to the face of the wheel, and conical plates or disks ee of sheet metal
bolted or riveted at their outer edges to the rim and secured to some of the spokes e³
by means of flanges et et (Figure 5) on the spokes, to which flanges the plates are
riveted. The spokes are shown as secured to the rim by having their outer ends
bent at right angles and bolted to the same while the inner ends of the spokes are
bolted to radial lugs on the hub.
The car illustrated is intended more particularly for actuation by an electric
motor, and devices for making electric connection between the track and car are
provided as follows: H H are electric conductors having the form of metal strips
and mounted in bars H' of insulating material. Said bars H'H' are located one
at each side of the track and supported conveniently by means of brackets h
upon the uprights B' B' of the track structure. A contact wheel I is arranged
horizontally beneath the car and bears against the conductor H, said wheel I
(Figures 3 and 4) being mounted on a short vertical shaft i having bearings in a
sliding frame I mounted on transverse guides 1 12 beneath the car.
The contact
wheel is pressed or thrown outward against the conductor by a spring or springs
of suitable form. As shown in the drawing two coiled springs [³ ³ are placed
around the guide rods which are secured in the frame I and pass through
guide lugs on the guides 12 12. Said guides 12 1' are shown as formed upon a
rectangular frame 1 which is secured to the bottom of the car by depending
brackets bolted at their upper ends to the car bottom. Two similar contact
wheels will be used, one upon each end section C of the car.
For the purpose of enabling telegraphic messages to be transmitted to the car
other conductors J J are located between the supporting rails, and another contact
wheel K is located on the car so as to bear upon said conductors. The
conductors JJ consist of metal strips inserted in a longitudinal bar J¹ of insulating
material, said strip being supported by means of metal brackets jj attached to the
cross pieces A' A¹. The contact wheel K is shown as attached to a short shaft k
mounted in a sliding frame K' which is adapted to slide on stationary guides K* K*
in the same manner as herein before described in connection with the main contact
wheel I.
The section C of the car is provided at its forward end with a prolongation or
prow, indicated as a whole by L, having an inclined top surface extending from
the upper part of the car downwardly to a point near the bottom thereof and
forming under ordinary circumstances an inclined deflecting surface adapted to
lessen the resistance to the forward movement of the car occasioned by atmospheric
pressure. The forward end of said prow is preferably made narrower than the
width of the car (Figure 2). The main part of the inclined top surface of the
prow is formed by means of transverse slats M M pivoted at their ends and
adapted to overlap at their edges, the pivoting of the slats enabling them to be
thrown into an upwardly and outwardly inclined position, as seen in dotted lines in

page_text: Figure 1. The slats when in this position present a large surface to the action of
the air by which the forward movement of the car will be greatly retarded. To
increase the efficiency of the slats a continuous wall or partition N is located
below the slats at such distance from the same that when the slats are opened their
lower edges will be adjacent to the wall or partition, thereby forming pockets to
catch the air. As herein shown the prow L is made of sheet metal supported on
an iron frame.
As a means of actuating the slats M M a longitudinally movable actuating rod M'
is attached to the same by which all of them may be operated at once. For giving
end wise movement to said rod M' the same is shown as connected with a crank
disk M' which is actuated by means of a worm shaft M engaging teeth on said
crank disk and provided with a hand wheel m¹ by means of which the worm shaft
may be turned.
It will be obvious that pivoted slats like the slats M M shown may be applied
to the side walls of the prow to give additional resistance surface when found
necessary or desirable.
Vertical tubes OO are shown as passing from the upper part of the partition N
to the bottom of the car to form outlets at the upper end of the compartment
formed by said partition, to allow the escape therefrom of snow. The inclined
surface of the prow L not only serves to lessen resistance to the forward movement
of the car but serves to increase the adhesion of the driving wheels to the rails by
reason of the fact that air pressure on the said surface will tend to force downwardly
the section C.
To now refer to the form of elevated track supporting structure shown in
Figures 7 to 10, A A indicate supporting rails for the car, A' A' lateral guide or
bearing rails, and B B, B' B' are horizontal members or stringers of the track
structure of which the members B B are located beneath the rails A A, and the
members B' B' are located above and outside of the members B B and support the
bearing rails A' A'. The members B B consist of two rolled girders of U-shape
in cross section bolted together with their central webs vertical and their flanges
extending outwardly. CC C¹ C' indicate the transverse members or cross-pieces
of the track structure, the cross-pieces C C being attached to posts or uprights DD
while the cross-pieces C¹ C¹ are attached to short posts EE which form upright
members of a truss and are supported from the posts D D by means of tension
members or tie-rods F F. Said posts DD are shown as formed each by two
pairs dd, d d of angle bars of which the outermost pair extend upwardly to
the stringer B and the innermost pair terminate at the cross-pieces CC to which
they are bolted. Each cross-piece C is shown as consisting of two angle bars c c
(Figure 10) arranged with their vertical flanges adjacent to each other and
the horizontal flanges extending outwardly, the ends of said horizontal flanges
being extended over the upper ends of the angle bars d' d' of the posts and beut
downwardly and inserted between the flanges of said angle bars d¹ d'and the upper
angle bars d, d to both of which bars they are secured by bolts. Said angle
bars d d are bolted against the outer faces of said angle bars c c. To additionally
connect the angle bars c c with the posts D, plates G G are inserted between said
angle bars c c and the external angle bars d d of said posts, said plates G being
bolted or riveted to said angle bars c c and d d and also to the angle bars d' d¹.
The stringer B¹ is shown as having the form of an angle bar and as connected
with the outer angle bars d d of the posts D by means of horizontal bolts which
pass through the lateral flanges of the angle bars d d and the vertical flanges of
said stringer B'. The struts or short posts E E each consist of two angle bars e e
which are secured to the ends of the cross-pieces C', plates G¹ being employed to
afford additional strength in the joints connecting said parts.
Said bars e e are
bolted or riveted to the depending flanges of the upper stringer B'.
The tie-rods F may be secured to the posts D and struts E in any convenient
manner, but as herein shown said tie-rods engage notches ď ď formed in the

page_text: outwardly extending flanges of the angle bars d d and similar notches e¹ e¹ in
the lower ends of the outwardly extending flanges of the bars ee. A turnbuckle Fl
is employed in the tie-rod F to adjust the tension of the same. The L-shaped
guide or bearing rails A'A' are secured against the vertical flanges of the stringers B¹
by bolts or otherwise.
It will be observed that the stringers B' B¹, struts E E and tie-rod F constitute
a truss giving strength and rigidity to the structure between the supporting posts
while said stringers afford proper support for both the supporting and guide
rails A and A¹.
The track structure is shown as provided with strips H carrying conductors H¹
and supported on brackets h h for supplying electricity to the vehicle constructed
in the same manner as the corresponding parts shown in Figures 1 and 2. Between
the track rails is an insulating strip I provided at its margins with a metallic strip I'I
supported by metal brackets i, said metallic strips II being used for establishing
telegraphic or telephonic communication with the car.
In Figures 11 and 12 we have shown a construction in an elevated track-
supporting structure which contains the same general features of construction
hereinbefore described but is adapted for sustaining two tracks or sets of track
rails. In this instance A A¹ are supporting and guide rails corresponding with
those before described. The track-supporting structure embraces longitudinal
stringers JJ (corresponding with the stringers B₁ B₁ hereinbefore described),
main transverse girders K which rest on supporting posts L L, intermediate trans-
verse cross-pieces L' L' (corresponding with the cross-pieces C₁hereinbefore
described), and vertical struts L' L' arranged at points intermediate to the posts K'.
The struts I extend downwardly past the cross-pieces L'and are attached at their
lower ends to longitudinal stringers J2. Inclined tie-rods jj extend from the
bottom of each strut upwardly to the upper ends of adjacent struts, thereby giving
stiffness to the structure and forming in effect a truss. In cases where the distance
between the supporting posts L L is great the posts K' K' extend upwardly from
the girders K, and suspension cables k k extend from the upper ends of said
posts K K downwardly to the struts L2 L2. These suspension cables may be
arranged in any desired or preferred manner, the same being herein shown as
engaged one with the middle strut of the span and the other with two struts nearer
the ends of the span. The posts K' K'are connected at their upper ends by cross-
pieces. Short cross-pieces M' M' are shown as attached to the stringers J J³
and the struts L L and as extending outwardly beyond the struts to engage the
cables k k. It is obvious that the structure shown in Figures 11 and 12 is
generally similar to that shown in Figures 7 and 8, the main difference being that
in Figures 11 and 12 the vertical struts are extended downwardly so as to make a
deeper truss and one having greater strength. The parts constituting the truss
shown in Figures 11 and 12 are connected with each other in substantially the same
manner as herein before described in connection with the form of truss shown in
Figures 7 and 8.
The supporting posts L L in Figures 11 and 12 are located at a distance apart
greater than the width of the elevated structure proper, and to prevent undue strain
on the girders K K inclined struts or braces N N are shown as secured to said
posts LL and to the posts K' K. Other braces N' N' are shown as extending
from the outer ends of the girders K K upwardly to the struts N N. The
girders K K are shown as consisting each of two U-shaped beams arranged
with a space between them, and the struts N N are shown as passing between
said beams.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :
1. The combination with a track having supporting rails and external guide or
bearing rails located above the same, of a car provided with supporting wheels and

page_text: with guide wheels mounted on inclined axes and bearing upwardly and outwardly
against the said bearing rails, substantially as described.
2. The combination with a car consisting of two end sections provided with
supporting wheels and a middle section pivoted to and suspended between the end.
sections, of a track structure embracing supporting rails, and bearing rails located
above and outside of the supporting rails, and guide wheels on the end sections of"
the car arranged at front and rear of the supporting wheels and bearing upwardly
and outwardly against the said bearing rails, substantially as described.
3. The combination with a track structure embracing supporting rails, and
bearing rails located above and outside of the same, of electric conductors extending
along the rails between the bearing and supporting rails and above the latter, a car
provided with supporting wheels and bearing wheels, and yieldingly supported
contact wheels on the car arranged to bear outwardly against the said conductors,
substantially as described.
4. The combination with a car provided with a prow having an inclined surface,
of a plurality of transversely arranged pivoted strips or slats, and means for
actuating the same, substantially as described.
5. The combination with a car having a prow provided with inclined surfaces, of
a plurality of transversely arranged slats pivoted to the said prow, and an inner wall
or partition closing the spaces between the slats when the latter are open, substan-
tially as described.
6. The combination with a car or motor, of a prow thereon having a wide down-
wardly and forwardly inclined top surface operating to deflect the air in the
forward movement of the car and also to increase the pressure of the traction
wheels of the car against the rails, substantially as described.
7. The combination with supporting rails and guide rails located above and
outside of the same, of an elevated structure comprising longitudinal stringers.
sustaining the supporting rails and guide rails, cross-pieces extending beneath and
outside of the stringers which sustain the supporting rails, and upright parts or
posts attached to said cross-pieces and to the stringers supporting the guide rails,
substantially as described.
8. The combination with supporting rails and guide rails located above and
outside of the same, of a track-supporting structure comprising lower and upper
stringers sustaining the supporting and guide rails, supporting posts, cross-pieces
attached to said posts and supporting the lower stringers, intermediate cross-pieces
attached to said stringers and uprights attached to said intermediate pieces and to
the upper stringers, said uprights and upper stringers forming respectively the
vertical struts and upper longitudinal members of trusses between the supporting
posts, substantially as described.
9. The combination with supporting rails and guide rails located above and outside
of the same, of a track supporting structure comprising lower and upper stringers
sustaining the supporting and guide rails, posts or uprights which extend upwardly
to and sustain the upper stringers, cross-pieces attached to said posts and supporting
the lower stringers, intermediate cross-pieces between the posts attached to said
stringers, vertical struts attached to said intermediate cross-pieces and to the upper
stringers, and tension members or tie-rods sustaining the said struts from the posts,
substantially as described.
10. An elevated track-supporting structure comprising lower and upper
longitudinal stringers, cross-pieces attached to the lower stringers and supporting
posts consisting of inner and outer bars of which the outer bars exteud upwardly
to and sustain the upper stringers and are aitached to the ends of the cross-pieces,
and the inner bars terminate at and are secured to the said ends of the cross-pieces,
substantially as described.
11. A track-supporting structure comprising lower and upper longitudinal
stringers, transverse pieces attached to the lower stringers, and supporting posts
each consisting of two outer and two inner bars, of which the outer bars extend
upwardly to and sustain the upper stringers and the inner bars terminate at and

page_text: are attached to the said ends of the cross-pieces and extend between and are
secured to the said inner and outer bars of the posts, substantially as described.
Signed this 3rd day of January 1894.
CHARLES COE BURTON.
GEORGE MCMURTRY LUDLOW.
LOUIS EDWARD HOLDEN.
CURTIS GRUBB HUSSEY.
JOHN CHARLES DES GRANGES.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicants.