Improvements in the Permanent-way of Rack-railways and in Apparatus for use in Conjunction therewith.
Year: 1896

page_text: de 13.
Date of Application, 21st Dec., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 20th Sept., 1897-Accepted, 23rd Oct., 1897
Improvements in the Permanent-way of Rack-railways and in
Apparatus for use in Conjunction therewith.
I, EMIL STRUB, of Interlaken, Switzerland, Engineer, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to a rack for mountain-railways, which, with the object
of being more easily manufactured and more readily mounted, is constructed as
a rail that is to say, is formed at its lower part, of the cross section of an ordinary
railway-rail. The head of the rail constitutes the ruck proper, as it carries
the toothed portion, the teeth and tooth-spaces of which are naturally at right
angles to the longitudinal direction of the rail. This toothed head of the rail is
made of downwardly tapering form in cross section-that is to say, it is bevelled
laterally in such a manner that its base or lower part is considerably narrower
than its top or upper part-the object being to adapt it for the use of safety tongs
that embrace the head. These tongs serve to guide the vehicle-that is to say its
toothed wheels securely along the rack, and to prevent the wheels from slipping
laterally off the rail,, and also to prevent the vehicle from rising of the rail.
They may also be employed for braking in ordinary working, and also for braking
on an emergency-e.g., the breaking of an axle. The conical sides of the rack
head serve in this case as abutments for the claws of the tongs when braking,
these claws being made of corresponding conicity so as to make it quite impossible
for the tongs to slip off in an upward direction.
The new rack is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein
Fig. 1 shows the rack in vertical cross section in conjunction with the claws
of a pair of tongs;
Fig. 2 shows the rack in side elevation;
Fig. 3 shows the mounting of the rack on a transverse sleeper together with a
jointing device, the rack and the sleeper being shown in vertical cross section;
Fig. 4 is a side elevation corresponding to Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 shows a pair of tongs with its operating device;
Fig. 6 is a plan of a rack-switch; and
Fig. 7 shows a section taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6.
The rack A is made at its lower part, that is to say, below the teeth, in the
form of an ordinary railway rail. It forms a rail having its head a provided
with teeth arranged transversely to its longitudinal axis, and therefore it can be
made in the simplest manner by rolling and subsequently finishing the teeth
by milling, sawing, or otherwise. For the sake of simplicity the teeth a¹ have
at their upper parts straight bevelled flanks, whilst the tooth-spaces a² are formed
by oval recesses which undercut the teeth so as to keep the tooth-friction as low as
possible and to enable dirt to escape for the purpose of allowing the teeth to
gear accurately together. For the purpose just mentioned the base of the tooth-
space instead of being straight throughout, may be bevelled from the centre a³
towards both sides (as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1): this device is par-

page_text: ticularly useful in the case of high mountain railways and the like, where
ice is formed, and where it enables the teeth of the toothed wheel to
force away the ice towards the sides. The head and the teeth are made down-
wardly conical or tapering at the sides-that is to say, they are bevelled equally on
both sides, the bevels diverging outwardly and extending from the base of
the head a to a little beyond the side edges a° of the oval curve of the tooth
space. These inclined surfaces a' are adapted for the use of safety-tongs of the
kind shown in Fig. 5, whose limbs B are provided at their lower ends with
claws 61 that embrace the head or toothed portion of the rack and are bevelled
to correspond to the bevel of the head thereof. The tongs are thus enabled to
prevent the vehicle from rising and the wheels thereof from slipping laterally
off the rack. Braking can be effected by pressing the claws against the head of
the rack, so that such safety tongs can also be employed for braking-purposes.
They may be arranged either for braking in ordinary. working or to work
automatically for braking in emergencies, such as the breaking of an axle; the
tongs may be combined with operating devices by means of which both the ordinary
braking and the braking in emergencies will be effected. Fig. 5 shows by way
of example the arrangement of a pair of tongs of this kind and their means of
operation. The limbs B' are made as two-armed levers, whose pivots are connected
together by means of a plate p. Each of these limbs is connected to a screw
nut C or on the spindle c of the operating device C, by the engagement of the
free end of its longer arm with a stud-like projection on the corresponding
nut. The spindle e has right and left haud threads, so that by rotating the
spindle, the nuts can be moved nearer to and further away from each other and
the claws be thereby moved away from and pressed against the corresponding
surfaces of the rack-head. The rotation of the spindle, which is suitably mounted
in the frame of the vehicle or in a part of the same, may be effected by hand
by means of suitable linkwork, through the medium of toothed gearing, or, when
braking in an emergency, by an automatic operating-mechanism.
Figs. 3 and 4 show by way of example a suitable method of connecting
together the ends of two rails A A° and fastening them to a transverse sleeper S.
The connexion and fastening are effected in the present case by means of bent
fish-plates, which are fixed to the transverse sleeper' S by means of screw-bolts & in
the usual manner, and are bolted to the rail-ends by means of screw-bolts 1.
The switch-apparatus M (Fig. 6) is constructed in such a manner as to enable
the tongs carried by a vehicle to pass over it safely. It comprises three movable
rack-portions-m² m² and m³ which can be operated simultaneously with the
corresponding switches or points, by means of a common point-lever H. Fig. 7
shows a cross section taken where the rack crosses the rail S¹. As in all rack-
railways with rack-switches the toothed wheels must cross the running rails,
it is necessary that the rack should be higher than the running-rail. For this
purpose the lower part of the rack is cut away or cut out for the length of the
crossing-place, in such a manner that the rack A has at this crossing-place the cross-
sectional form shown in Fig. 7, which is carried over the head of the
running-rail. This construction, as above stated, allows of the unimpeded passage
of the tongs, which has not been the case with the constructions of switches
heretofore employed.
Important advantages of the new rack are, therefore, simplicity of construction
and consequent reduction of the cost of manufacture in regard to the racks
heretofore employed; simpler and easier erection and removal, and consequent
reduction of the cost of the permanent way of railways constructed with such
racks; increased safety in working through the use of the aforesaid nippers; and
greater durability with relatively smaller weight.
The use of the tongs allows of steeper gradients than are possible in the case
of racks of other kinds with vertical engagement of teeth. The rack can be
readily curved, can be reversed, can be strongly and simply fished at the joints,
and has but few small iron fittings. It can be fixed throughout on the sleepers like

page_text: the running-rails and does not require special appliances and methods for moving
it about. Switches, level-crossing, and the rest of the railway require only one
single form of rack.
Dated the 21st dor of Deanmber 1806
Improvements in the Permanent-way of Rack-railways and in
Apparatus for use in Conjunction therewith.
I, EMIL STRUB, of Interlaken, Switzerland, Engineer, 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 a rack for mountain-railways, which, with the object
of being more easily manufactured and more readily mounted, is constructed as
a rail that is to say, is formed at its lower part, of the cross section of an ordinary
railway-rail. The head of the rail constitutes the rack proper, as it contains
the toothed portion, the teeth and tooth-spaces of which are of course at right
angles to the longitudinal direction of the rail. This toothed head of the rail is
made of downwardly tapering form in cross section-that is to say, it is bevelled
laterally in such a manner that its base or lower part is considerably narrower
than its top or upper part-the object being to adapt it for the use of safety tongs
that embrace the head. These tongs serve to guide the vehicle-that is to say its
toothed wheels-securely along the rack, and to prevent the wheels from slipping
laterally off the rail, and also to prevent the vehicle from rising off the rail.
They may also be employed for braking in ordinary working, and also for braking
on an emergency such as the breaking of an axle. The bevelled sides of the rack-
head serve in this case as abutments for the claws of the tongs when braking,
these claws being made of corresponding conicity so as to make it quite impossible
for the tongs to slip off in an upward direction.
The new rack is illustrated in the drawings, filed with my Provisional
Specification, wherein
Fig. 1 shows the rack in vertical cross section in conjunction with the claws
of a pair of tongs;
Fig. 2 shows the rack in side elevation;
Fig. 3 shows the mounting of the rack on a transverse sleeper together with a
jointing device, the rack and the sleeper being shown in vertical cross section;
Fig. 4 is a side elevation corresponding to Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 shows a pair of tongs with its operating device;
Fig. 6 is a plan of a rack-switch-apparatus; and
Fig. 7 shows a section taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6.
The rack A is made at its lower part, that is to say, below the teeth, in the
form of an ordinary railway-rail. It forms a rail having its head a provided
with teeth arranged transversely to its longitudinal axis, and therefore it can be
made in the simplest manner by rolling and subsequently finishing the teeth
by milling, sawing, or otherwise. For the sake of simplicity the teeth a¹ have
at their upper parts straight bevelled flanks, whilst the tooth-spaces a³ are formed
by oval recesses which undercut the teeth so as to keep the tooth-friction as low as
possible and to enable dirt to escape for the purpose of allowing the teeth to
gear accurately together. For the purpose just mentioned the base of each tooth-
space instead of being straight through, may be bevelled from the centre 03

page_text: towards both sides (as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1) this device is par-
ticularly useful in the case of high-mountain railways and the like, where ice is
formed and falls of stones occur, and where it enables the teeth of the
toothed wheel to force away the ice or allow the stones to slide
off' towards the sides., The head and the teeth are made down-
wardly tapering at the sides--that is to say, they are bevelled equally on both
sides, the bevels, which are plane, diverging outwardly and extending from the base
of the head a to a little beyond the side edges a° of the oval curve of the tooth
space. These inclined surfaces a are adapted for the use of safety-tongs of the
kind shown in Fig. 5, whose limbs B are provided at their lower ends with
claws 6 that embrace the head, or toothed portion of the rack and are bevelled
to correspond to the bevel of the head thereof. The tongs are thus enabled to
prevent the vehicle from rising and the wheels thereof from slipping laterally
off the rack. Braking can be effected by pressing the claws against the head of
the rack, so that such safety-tongs can also be employed for braking-purposes.
They may be arranged either for braking in ordinary working or to work
automatically for braking in emergencies, such as the breaking of an axle; the
tongs may be combined with operating-devices by means of which both the oydinary
braking and the braking in emergencies will be effected. Fig. 5 shows by way
of example the arrangement of a pair of tongs of this kind and their operating-
means. The limbs B are made as two-armed levers, whose pivots are connected
together by means of a plate p. Each of these limbs is connected to a screw-
nut or on the spindle c of the operating-device C, by the engagement of the
free end of its longer arm 3 with a stud-like projection co on the corresponding
nut. The spindle c has right and left hand threads, so that by rotating the
spindle, the nuts can be moved nearer to and further away from each other and
the claws be thereby moved away from and pressed against the corresponding
surfaces of the rack-head. The rotation of the spindle, which is suitably mounted
in the frame of the vehicle or in a part of the same, may be effected by hand
by means of suitable linkwork through the medium of toothed gearing or, when
braking in an emergency, by an automatic operating-mechanism.
Figs. 3 and 4 show by way of example a suitable method of connecting
together the ends of two rails A As, and fastening them to a transverse sleeper S.
The connection and fastening are effected in the present case by means of bent
fish-plates which are fixed to the transverse sleeper S by means of screw bolts s in
the usual manner, and are bolted to the rail-ends by means of screw-bolts l.
The switch-apparatus M (Fig. 6) is constructed in such a manner as to enable
the tongs carried by a vehicle to pass over it safely. It comprises three movable
rack-portions m³ m³ and m³, which can be operated simultaneously with the
corresponding switches or points, by means of a common point-lever H. Fig. 7
shows a cross section taken where the rack crosses the rail S1. As in all rack-
railways with rack-switches the toothed wheels must cross the running rails,
it is necessary that the rack should be higher than the running-rail. For this
purpose the lower part of the rack is cut away or cut out for the length of the
crossing-place, in such a manner that the rack A has at this crossing-place the cross-
sectional form shown in Fig. 7, which is carried over the head of the
running-rail. This construction, as above stated, allows of the unimpeded passage
of the tongs, which has not been the case with the constructions of switches
heretofore employed.
Important advantages of the new rack are, therefore, simplicity of construction
and consequent reduction of the cost of manufacture in regard to the racks
heretofore employed; simpler and easier erection and removal, and consequent
reduction of the cost of the permanent way of railways constructed with such
racks; increased safety in working through the use of the aforesaid nippers; and
greater durability with relatively smaller weight.
The use of the tongs allows of steeper gradients than are possible in the case
of racks of other kinds with vertical engagement of teeth. The rack can be

page_text: readily curved, can be reversed, can be strongly and simply fished at the joints,
and has but few small iron fittings. It can be fixed throughout on the sleepers like
the running-rails and does not require special appliances and methods for moving
it about. Switches, level-crossings, and the rest of the railway require only one
single form of rack.
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. A rack for mountain-railways that is formed like an ordinary railway-rail
but has teeth in the upper part of its head the spaces between which extend quite
acros the head and perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the rail, the rail-
head having, in addition to the ordinary bevels for the fish plates, also special
plane bevels adapted to serve as drawing-surfaces for the clamping-jaws of safety
tongs, which are carried by a vehicle and which embracing the head, will prevent
the vehicle from being driven upwards or from sliding laterally from the rack
and will serve for braking during ordinary working or for braking in case of
emergency, substantially as described.
2.rack of the kind referred to in the preceding claim, in which the bases
of the tooth-spaces are bevelled downwards from the middle towards both sides,
substantially as described.
3. Racks for mountain-railways substantially as hereinbefore described with
reference to and shown in the drawings.
4. The combination of a rakk and safety or bake apparatus hereinbefore
described with reference to and shown in Fig. 5.
5. Rack switch apparatus constructed, arranged, and operating substantially
as hereinbefore described with reference to and shown in Figs. 6 and 7 of the
drawings.
Dated 20th day of Santamban 1897
F. WISE HOWORTH,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agent for the Applicant.