Improvements in Car Couplings..
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Dec., 1896--Accepted, 13th Feb., 1887
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by CORNELIUS HALPIN, Stone Mason, of Tarrytown,
County of Westchester, EDGAR MATTHEW SMITH, Gentleman; of 222 Monroe
Street, Brooklyn, and FREDERICK WILLIAM SMITH, Gentleman, of Windle
Park, Tarrytown, aforesaid, all in the State of New York, United States of
America.].
Improvements in Car Couplings..
I, ERNEST DE PASS, of 78 Fleet Street, in the City of London, Fellow of the
Chartered Institute of Patent Agents, 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, reference being had to the accompanying
drawings and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
This invention relates to car couplings of that class in which each draw head is
provided with a pivotal hooked jaw adapted to automatically couple, when in proper
position, with the corresponding pivotal hooked jaw of another draw head, and each
pivotal jaw being formed with a notched tail piece that will press against and!
interlock with a locking dog which is pivotally supported in a vertically slotted
portion of the draw head.
The invention consists in features of construction and novel combinations of parts.
in a pivotal hooked car coupling, as herein after described and claimed.
In the annexed drawings illustrating the improvements;
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one drawhead showing its pivotal hooked jaw:
in an open or unlocked position in readiness for coupling automatically with the
closed or locked jaw of another drawhead having the same construction.
Fig. 2 is a horizontal: section of the drawhead showing its hooked jaw looked in.
its closed position, and indicates, in dotted lines, the manner of coupling with an
ordinary link and pin; and shows also the means for preventing access of the link
to the locking dog that secures the hooked jaw.
Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section of the drawhead with the pivotal hooked
jaw in uncoupled position.
Referring to the drawings, it will be seen that the outer end of the draw head L
is provided with two lateral and forward projecting horns 2 and 3, one on each
side. The horn 2 is short and flared somewhat outward, while the horn 3 is longer
and extended more directly forward.. In the bifurcated extremity of the longer,
horn 3,lis pivoted a horizontally swinging hooked jaw 4 that is adapted to be engaged
with a similar booked jaw carried by an opposing drawhead.
The pivotal hooked jaw 4 has formed thereon a tail piece 5 which projects trans
versely towards the centre line of the drawhead when the hooked jaw is in its opened.
position. When the hooked jaw is closed, in coupled position, the tail piece 5 is
received in a housing or recess 6 that is formed in the horn 3 to which tho said jaw is
pivoted. It will be seen that the tail piece 5 is curved horizontally forward and that.
in its extremity is formed a V-shaped notch 7 which is extended from the top of said'
tail piece to its under side.
For the purpose of holding the hooked jaw 4 in an open or forward position;
there is provided a spring 8 that is coiled around and supported by a pin 9 which is
secured vertically in the forward portion of the recess or housing ; one end of
said, spring, being provided with a fixed bearing while the other end is extended

page_text: and made to bear against the rear surface of the tail piece 5, so as to force the
jaw 4 to open and hold the said tail piece in its forward position, as shewn in
Fig. 1.
The interior of the drawhead is formed with a recess 10 communicating with the
drawhead month. In the top forward portion of the drawhead, is a longitudinally
arranged slot 11, and in the lower forward portion is a similar slot 12, both slots being
in communication with the drawhead interior. These slots 11 and 12 provide for the
required movements of a forwardly and rearwardly swinging dog 13 that is adapted to
lock back the hooked coupling jaw in its olosed position, as shewn in Fig. 2. The
locking dog 18 is pivotally supported, at its forward upper corner, in bearings 14 on
the upper side of the drawhead and it occupies a normally vertical position with its
front vertical face in bearing contact with abutments 15 at the forward ends of the
slots 11 and 12 in which it is arranged to swing. The upper end of this locking
dog 13 is formed with a flanged cap 16 that serves to normally close the slot 11 and
exclude snow and rain.. On the top of the cap 16 is a perforated Ing 17 for attachment
of a chain that may be extended to any required point, for use in raising the dog 18
so as to swing it backward and thereby release the hooked jaw 4, in the act of
uncoupling.
Across the rear end of the upper slot 11, is supported a transversely arranged pin
or axle 18 on which is coiled a spring 19, one end of which has a fixed bearing
beneath the top of the recessed drawhead, while the other end is extended forward and
downward in bearing contact with the rear side of the dog 18, and thus holds the said
dog so that it cannot be swung rearward by jolting or vibration of the drawhead, or
by shock of two drawheads coming together in the operation of coupling.
When it is desired to set the coupling in readiness for automatic action, the pivotal
hooked jaw 4 on one drawhead is pushed inward and rearward so that the tail piece 5
will bear against the pivotal locking dog 18 and swing it rearward, against the pressure
of its spring 19; and it will be seen that as soon as the rear face of the tail piece has
cleared the forward face of the dog 13, the said dog will, under the influence of gravity
and by the action of the spring 19. immediately swing forward into firm locking
engagement with the V-shaped notch 7, thereby securing the jaw 4 in closed position,
as shown in Fig. 2: On the other drawhead; the pivotal hooked jaw 4 is left in open
position, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. Now, on bringing together the two drawheads,
the closed jaw 4 on one drawhead will impinge against the tail piece 5 of the open jaw
on the other drawhead and thereby bring the two jaws into engagement, at the same
time swinging rearward the locking dog 13 of one drawhead until the tail piece 5 is
in position to have its notch 7 engaged by the said dog as it swings forward into
locking position, thus automatically coupling the two cars together. In order to
uncouple, it is only necessary to lift or swing rearward the locking dog 18. of either
drawhead, when immediately the spring 8 of the hooked jaw 4 on that drawhead will
swing or throw the said jaw ont of engagement with the other jaw.
It will be observed that the springs 8 and 19 hold the jaw. 4 and locking dog 13 of
each drawhead so firmly that they are not affected by vibrations or shocks when. the
drawheads are coupled, and thus the risk of accidental uncoupling is avoided.
The vertical engaging faces of the drawheads are of such depth as to afford ample
vertical play, due to inequalities of track without liability of uncoupling and, yet,
should one car go through a bridge or trestle it need not pull the cther down, as the
couplings will then readily drop apart. When coupled, the hooked jaws afford ample
room for lateral play and for turning curves.
In order to provide for coupling this drawhead with one having the ordinary link
and pin coupling, there is formed a notch or recess 20 in the hooked jaw 4 and pin
holes 21 that intersect said notch, so that when the jaw is closed and looked the said
notch 20 will afford passage for an ordinary link to be engaged by a pin dropped
through the holes 21, as usual. In the closed and locked position of the jaw 4, the
front face of the tail piece 5 extends so far across the drawhead mouth that a link
could not get access to the dog 13 to swing it rearward, and consequently the use of a
link would not incur the risk of unlocking the jaw as is possible with some hook jaw

page_text: couplings. By reference to Fig. 2, it will be seen that if the link entered far enough
it would take bearing on the inner side of the horn 2 and on the front face of the tail
piece 5, the drawhead mouth being so contracted by the form and position of the said
tail piece that a link cannot impinge against the locking dog.
The rear end of the drawhead receives the drawbar 22, and is bolted or otherwise
secured thereto in any suitable manner. On the sides of the drawhead near its rear
or inner end, are vertical flanges 28 the purpose of which is to prevent the drawhead
from being pulled out of the framing 24 in case of disconnection of the drawhead
from the drawbar. These flanges 23 are located in such relation to the framing 24 as
will afford ample room for longitudinal play or yielding of the drawhead and drawbar,
and yet serve as stops to arrest withdrawal of the drawhead in event of becoming
disconnected at the point of drawbar attachment, or in case the drawbar should be
broken.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said..
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what.
I claim is:
1. In a car coupling, the combination of a recessed drawhead: slotted at top and
bottom, a pivotal hooked jaw provided with a tail piece normally projecting across the
drawhead month and having in its end a V-shaped-notch with squared vertical sides, a
locking dog pivoted to swing forward and rearward in the slotted and recessed
drawhead and adapted to be swung back by said tail piece and become interlocked
with the V notch therein to secure the booked jaw in a closed and locked position, a.
spring to hold the said dog to its engagement with the notched tail piece, a transversely
arranged pin to support said spring, means for swinging tho said dog rearward to.
release the closed jaw, and a spring to throw the released jaw outward, substantially
as shewn and described.
2. The improved car coupling, substantially as hereinbefore described and shewn in.
the annexed drawings.