Improvements in and in the Manufacture of Combined Chairs and Sleepers.
Year: 1884

page_text: Improvements in and in the Manufacture of Combined Chairs
and Sleepers.
I PETER KIRK of Bankfield Workington in the County of Cumberland, Iron
and Steel Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN AND IN THE MANUFACTURE OF COMBINED CHAIRS AND
SLEEPERS" to be as follows:-
My invention relates to the chairs and sleepers employed in the formation of
permanent way and particularly to the combinations of such appliances wherein
the chairs are formed of rolled steel or iron and are attached to the rolled sleepers
the principal object of my invention being to obtain a firmer and more durable
attachment. To this end I form each chair in one piece or in two pieces and I form
upon the lower side of each chair or piece one, two or more tongues which enter
slots punched or formed in the sleeper and are riveted thereon. I prefer in all
cases to perform the riveting operation when the parts to be united are at a welding
heat so that the chair is welded or more or less welded to the sleeper or I rivet or
partly rivet or clench the parts then complete the operation after the parts have
been heated. In order to obtain a firmer hold upon the sleeper and to furnish a
stronger base for the chair and the rail I prefer to thicken the sleeper at the two
places which are to come below the rail. This I effect by forming a recess or by
preference two recesses in one of the rolls or in the rolls but it might be convenient
in some cases to weld thicknessing pieces on the sleepers. In one construction
I punch long slots in the thicker parts of the sleeper these slots being in length
about equal to the width of the chair and being wider below than above. On the
chairs are two tongues to enter and project through these slots. The construction
may be greatly varied as for example the slots and tongues may be shorter than
the width of the chair or there may be two or more shorter tongues or studs in
line to enter correspondingly situated and shaped slots or perforations in the sleeper.
In some cases or in any case each chair may consist of two separate jaws or pieces
or of a jaw or abutment for the key and of a lower clip piece or abutment for the
other side of the rail or for the foot on the other side according to the section of
rail for which the combination is intended. I prefer that the chairs or jaws shall
be of rolled steel as a more elastic grip upon the rail is obtained than when wrought

page_text: iron or cast malleable iron is used but I do not confine myself to the use of steel.
When the chairs or the jaw pieces are welded to the sleeper the parts are
practically in one piece there being no loose pieces or parts to work loose excepting
the ordinary key or appliance for wedging or securing the rail in the chair.
Although I prefer to weld the parts together I do not confine myself to this as
a comparatively secure connection may be made by riveting clenching or pressing
the tongues in the slots without obtaining a welded connection.
Improvements in and in the Manufacture of Combined Chairs
and Sleepers.
I PETER KIRK of Bankfield Workington in the County of Cumberland, Iron
and Steel Manufacturer do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN AND IN THE MANUFACTURE OF COMBINED CHAIRS AND
SLEEPERS," and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement and accompanying
drawings:-
My Invention relates to the chairs and sleepers employed in the formation of
permanent way and particularly to the combinations of such appliances wherein
the chairs are formed of rolled steel or iron and are attached to the rolled sleepers
the principal object of my invention being to obtain a firmer and more durable
attachment. To this end I form each chair in one piece or in two pieces and
I form upon the lower side of each chair or piece one, two or more tongues which
enter slots punched or formed in the sleeper and are riveted thereon. I prefer in
all cases to perform the riveting operation when the parts to be united are at a
welding heat so that the chair is welded or more or less welded to the sleeper or
I rivet or partly rivet or clench the parts then complete the operation after the
parts have been heated. In order to obtain a firmer hold upon the sleeper and
to furnish a stronger base for the chair and the rail I prefer to thicken the sleeper
at the two places which are to come below the rail.
In order that the manner in which I propose to carry my Invention into practical
effect may be clearly understood I will describe the same with reference to the
accompanying, drawings wherein Fig. 1 represents an end view of two jaws and
illustrates the sections of bars which may be rolled for the production of the jaws.
The bars of such sections would be cut into suitable lengths to form the jaws as

page_text: indicated by Fig. 2. Fig. 3 represents a Vertical Longitudinal Section of part of a
metal sleeper having the two jaws in position to be fixed thereto and therein
to form a chair and Fig. 4 represents a corresponding section of the same parts
after the riveting and welding operation has been completed. In Fig. 3 a is the
sleeper and b. c. are the two jaws which are to form a chair. The sleeper may be
of the cross sectional form indicated in Fig. 5 or of any suitable form. At the part
which comes below each chair the sleeper is made thicker the added thickness being
indicated by a¹. The jaws b. and c. may be made of steel or of wrought iron rolled
to the indicated sections or to sections suitable to the requirement of the case and
sawn or cut into lengths. I do not however confine myself to any particular
method of forming these jaws as they may be formed by pressing in dies or may be
finished in dies after having been cut from bars. Each jaw is rolled or formed
with a tongue or tenon b¹ c¹. In the proper places in the top part of the sleeper
I punch slots of dimensions suited to the lengths and breadths of the tongues or
tenons so that the latter can be inserted in the slots the tongues or tenons when so
inserted projecting below the metal of the sleeper as seen in Fig. 3. These tongues
are riveted up so as to unite the jaws firmly to the sleeper. In practice I bring
the parts to a welding heat before riveting up and I weld the parts together as
much as possible so as to combine the chair with the sleeper as firmly or nearly as
firmly as if the parts had been formed of one piece of metal. I may vary the
process by riveting the parts together roughly that is to say by clenching or
hammering down the projecting tongues to some extent before heating the parts to
a welding heat the welding being completed after such heating. In Fig. 4 the jaws
of the chair are supposed to have been so welded to the sleeper as to form one
homogeneous piece with the sleeper Fig. representing a cross section of the
sleeper with the chair in position. In these Figs. d. represents an ordinary double
headed rail secured within the jaws of the chair by means of a key e. but I do not
confine myself to any particular form of chair or of jaws to form chairs as the
formation of these parts will vary according to the form or section of the rail or
to the means employed to secure the same within the chair or jaws. I may
divide each tongue or tenon into two or more parts and form corresponding slots or
holes in the sleeper. Such a formation is illustrated in Fig. 6 wherein the tongue c¹
is divided into two parts by punching out or removing a portion of the tongue or
otherwise the jaw is formed with two tongues and two slots are punched or formed
in the sleeper. In some cases I may add the additional metal to the top of the
sleeper instead of to the underside of the same. Fig. 7 illustrates such a case.
this example the sleeper is formed to carry flat bottomed rails and the jaws are
made of forms suitable to hold such rails as for example of the forms indicated in
Fig. 8. The said jaws b. and c. are riveted and welded to the sleeper as in the
example illustrated by Fig. 1 but the jaw c. is much smaller being only required to
serve as an abutment for the bottom flange or foot of the rail. Instead of the
chair being composed of two separate jaws welded or secured to the sleeper in
the manner set forth a complete chair made of steel or of wrought iron and formed
with two or more tongues or tenons may be welded or secured to the sleeper by
riveting the tongues or tenons into slots or holes formed in the top of the sleeper
and by preferably welding the parts together as in the cases of the said jaws.
Such a chair is represented by Fig. 9. I prefer to make the chairs or the jaws b. c.
of steel either rolled as aforesaid or cast in the required form as a more elastic grip
upon the rail is obtained but I may use any description of iron or steel which will
weld, rivet or clench so as to be capable of being firmly united with or secured
to the sleeper without the aid of separate rivets or bolts. Hydraulic or other
pressure may be used in effecting or completing the union of the parts or in
finishing the combination. It may be convenient to press the jaws of the chairs
in suitable dies after the welding operation in order to complete their formation
or to bring them up to the gauge. It will be understood that the sleeper is made
of a length suitable to the requirements and is or may be provided with two chairs
or sets of holding jaws.
In

page_text: 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. A rolled steel sleeper to which are secured chairs or jaws by welding tongues
or tenons on the chairs or jaws into slots or holes formed in the sleeper substantially
as and for the purpose set forth and indicated.
2. A combined metal sleeper and chairs formed by riveting, clenching or welding
tongues or tenons rolled or formed on the metal chairs or rail holding jaws into
slots or holes punched or formed in the sleeper substantially as and for the purpose
set forth and indicated.
3. In the manufacture of combined chairs and sleepers for permanent way the
method of securing the chairs or jaws to form chairs to metal sleepers by providing
the chairs or jaws with tongues or tenons which are passed into slots or holes
punched or formed in the sleeper and are welded, riveted, hammered up or clenched
so as to firmly unite the parts together.
4. The combination of the metal sleeper rolled or formed with thicker seatings a¹
to receive the chairs with the jaws riveted or welded and secured to such sleeper
substantially as and for the purpose set forth and indicated.