Improvements in Fog-signal Placers for Railways.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Jan., 1895-Accepted, 16th Mar., 1895
1
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Fog-signal Placers for Railways.
I, THOMAS REGAN, of 11 Clinton Place, in the City, County and State of
New York, United States of America, 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 :-
My invention relates in general to devices for placing torpedoes upon a railway
to signal approaching trains, and is particularly designed for placing a torpedo upon
the rail from the rear car of a train in motion.
The general object of my invention is to provide a simpler, cheaper and more
efficient torpedo placer for this purpose than has heretofore been devised.
In accordance with my invention, I construct the torpedo-placer in two parts,
namely, a torpedo-holder to carry the torpedo and fasten it to the rail, and a carrier
to which the torpedo-holder is detachably secured and which is to be manipulated
by a train-hand on the rear of the moving train to deposit the torpedo-holder on
the rail and simultaneously detach it from the carrier.
The invention comprises, particularly, novel means for attaching the torpedo-
holder to and detaching it from the carrier; for securing the torpedo to the holder;
and for fixing the torpedo-holder on the rail; and in order that my invention may
be clearly ascertained, I shall first describe in detail the mode in which I perform
the same.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this
Specification, in the various figures of which, the same parts are designated by the
same letters.
Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating a torpedo-holder applied to a rail in.
accordance with my invention.
Figure 2 is a face view illustrating the attachment of the said torpedo-holder to
the carrier.
Figure 3 is a side partly sectional view of the same.
Figure 4 is a sectional plan view of the same.
Figures 5 and 6 are underside and edge views respectively, of an ordinary railway
torpedo.
A designates an ordinary railroad rail to which the torpedo-placer shown is
adapted.
As before stated, I construct the torpedo-placer in two parts, namely, a torpedo
holder B, as shown in Figure 1, and a carrier C, as best shown in Figure 3, to which
the torpedo-holder is detachably secured, and by which the torpedo-holder is
deposited on the rail and simultaneously detached from the carrier by a hand on the
rear of the signalling train as hereinafter described.
I form the carrier C, for ease in handling, of a straight wooden handle, rigidly
secured to a metallic head-piece, but I may make the carrier wholly of metal, and
may mount it permanently to slide in vertical guides over one rail on the rear of
the car.
For the sake of simplicity and economy, I make the torpedo-holder B wholly of
spring steel wire, bent into form, as shown.
For detachably securing the holder B to the carrier C, I provide the holder B
with a fastener, which I by preference make in the form of a spring-clamp F, to
embrace a corresponding clamping-head G formed on the carrier C, as shown in
Figures 2 and 3. The clamping-head G projects rearward from a vertical

page_text: :
bearing H, against which the front of the clamp F bears; so as to be held plumb,
and over the clamping-head G is a horizontal bearing H¹ for the top of the
clamp F. To better secure the clamp F to the clamping-head G, I form catches I
on the opposite head-clamping jaws F to enter catch-holes R in opposite sides of
the head G. I, by preference, make the spring-clamp F in the form of an
inverted "U," or loop, the arms of which form the head-clamping jaws F1, and
extend downward and are bent to form the opposite rail-clamping jaws K below
which they diverge to form opposite cam-jaws L, which thus practically form
continuations of the rail-clamping jaws K, and of the head-clamping jaws F¹, and
spring apart therewith.
I likewise form the holder B with forwardly and rearwardly extending horizontal
arms M N to rest upon the head of the rail A, and thus plumb the holder B,
and I prefer to form said arms M N of an elongated loop the spring-wire sides of
which are secured to the respective sides of the head- and rail-clamping jaws, and
re-inforce the same.
One, or, as shown, both arms M and N are adapted to receive in their ends a
torpedo O, in this instance, by the formation of a wire coil P, and the torpedo is
further secured therein by means of the ordinary attached pliable strap Q. But
in lieu thereof the torpedo O may be simply inserted within a double coil on the end
of either arm M or N, or secured to the said arm in any other suitable manner, with
or without the pliable strap Q.
In use, the torpedo-holder B is clamped, as described to the carrier C, and the
latter held vertically over the rail by the operator on the rear of the train, with the
clamping-head G facing rearward and the torpedo O on the rear arm M or N, as
the case may be, of the holder.
At the proper time, the carrier C is forced downward quickly, thereby causing
the diverging cam-jaws L on the holder to" find " the rail-head and be spread apart
thereby, until the rail-clamping jaws K spring under the rail-head and secure the
torpedo holder to the rail. Simultaneously the carrier-head-clamping jaws F1 are
spread apart by the spreading of the cam-jaws L, and the catches I withdrawn from
the catch holes R, so that the torpedo-holder is freed from the carrier-head (.
The carrier is thus retained by the operator on the train and used repeatedly to
place other holders carrying torpedoes on the rail.
The headbearing arms M and N ensure the proper setting of the holder on the
rail. The said arms M N may be made to fold on the head- and rail-clamping jaws,
if desired, for the sake of portability.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is ;-
1. In a torpedo placer a torpedo holder provided with a fastener to secure it to a
carrier fastener-operating cam-jaws to be spread apart by the rail and free the
holder and rail-clamping jaws substantially as herein described.
2. The torpedo holder provided with rail-clamping jaws forwardly and rearwardly
extending arms to rest upon the rail and means for fixing the torpedo on one of
said arms substantially as herein described.
3. The carrier provided with the clamping head to be embraced by the clamp on
the torpedo holder substantially as herein described.
4. The carrier provided with a clamping-head to be embraced by the catch-clamp
on the torpedo-holder said clamping head formed with catch holes substantially as
herein described.
5. The torpedo-holder provided with a clamp to embrace the clamping head on
the carrier rail clainping jaws and cam-jaws to be spread by the rail and operate
the clamp substantially as described.
6. The torpedo holder formed of spring wire bent to form the clamp the
clamp operating cam jaws and the rail-clamping jaws substantially as shown and
described.

page_text: 7. The torpedo-holder formed of wire bent to form the clamp the clamp-operating
cam-jaws the rail-clamping jaws and the oppositely extending arms to rest on the
bead of the rail substantially as shown and described.
8. The torpedo holder formed of wire bent to form the clamp the clamp-operating
cam-jaws the rail clamping jaws the oppositely extending head bearing arms and a
torpedo receptacle on one of said arms substantially as shown and described.
9. The torpedo carrier having the vertical bearing the clamping-head projecting
therefrom formed with catch-holes on opposite sides and a horizontal bearing over
the clamping head substantially as shown and described.
10. The torpedo holder formed on spring wire bent to form the clamp loop the
arms of which are extended to form the rail-clamping jaws and the cam-jaws
to be spread by the rail and spread the clamp loop substantially as shown and
described.
11. The combination with the carrier having the clamping head of the torpedo
holder having the clamp the clamp-operating cam-jaws and the rail-clamping jaws
substantially as herein described.
12. The combination with the carrier having the clamping head of the torpedo-
holder having the clamp the clamp-operating cam-jaws the rail-clamping jaws and
the head-bearing arms to one of which the torpedo is fixed substantially as herein
described.
DHL: Hond door of Tanum 1905
BOULT & W.ADE,
Agents for the Applicant.