An Improved Bolt and Nut, and Method of Locking same.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Mar. 1895-Accepted, 8th June, 1895
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Bolt and Nut, and Method of Locking same.
1, HENRY BEZER, of 39 Park Avenue, New Rochelle, in the County of.
Westchester, State of New York, U.S.A., Engineer and Patentee do hereby
declare the nature of my invention for AN IMPROVED BOLT AND NUT AND
METHOD OF LOCKING SAME, 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 to bolts and nuts, and it is designed especially to maintain,
in conjunction with fish plates a firm, durable joint of the abutting ends of a
railway.
The invention consists of the construction hereinafter set forth.
In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention and in which like letters
designate similar parts throughout the several views,
7
Figure 1 is a side elevation of the bolt and nut, embodying my invention, the
washer being in section.
"
Figure 2 is an end elevation of the bolt and nut looking in the direction of the
arrow of Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional elevation of a rail joint including my invention.
It is well known that there has been a great difficulty in maintaining the rail
joints of a railway firm and rigid, so as to effectually withstand the repeated strains
put upon them by the passage of the cars. There was a constant tendency of the
nuts to become loose on the bolts and finally to turn off. It was supposed that
this loosening of the nut was due to its untwisting from close frictional contact
with the fish plate caused by vibration incident to the passage of the cars and if
means should be devised to prevent the nut from turning when once firmly seated
on the bolt against the fish plate the rail joint would remain firm. Examination,
however, has revealed the fact that this is not the case. Even where the nut
remained firmly fixed on its bolt it has been found that in a short time the nut had to
be screwed home again to tighten the joint. Subsequent examination showed,
however, that the nut was again loose from the fish plate although it might still be
tight on the bolt. Finally after repeatedly tightening the nut down against the
plate the bolt in many cases broke. Careful examination and tests have shown me
that the first cause of the nut losing its grip on the fish plate is the stretching of
the bolt occasioned by the pounding action of the passing cars. This stretching is
not ordinarily due to an actual increase in the length of the bolt beyond its normal
length, but is due rather to a straightening of the bolt after having been bent in
the operation of screwing home the nut. I have found that the bolt is liable to be
thus bent during the act of forcing home the nut whenever there is not a true and
equal bearing of the wearing faces of the nut and head of the bolt against the fish
plates and that an untrue and unequal bearing of these faces is often due to the fact
that the fish plates do not stand in parallel vertical planes when embedded between the
treads and bases of the rails, or to the fact that the nut has the axis of its aperture' .
inclined to its wearing face, or to the fact that the head of the bolt has its wearing
face inclined to the shank of the bolt. When the bolt has from either of these or
from other causes been bent in forcing home the nut, the pounding action of the
passing cars will straighten the bolt and loosen the nut.
My invention provides means whereby the nut is always normally seated firmly
and evenly against its fish plate and whatever may be the conditions there is no
bending of the bolt or laceration of the threads.

page_text: g.
Referring now to Figures 1, 2 and 3, illustrating my invention, the bolt E is
provided with a head e, square shoulder and screw threads The nut F is made
with a rounded or ball face h and is provided with a radial slot k extending through
to the screw threaded aperture. The aperture of the nut is preferably made
slightly smaller in diameter than the diameter of the threaded end of the bolt and
when screwed home on the bolt the slot k permits the aperture to expand so as
to make a tight fit, the threads of the bolt and nut meshing fully and firmly
together, The washer L fits loosely on the holt and has on one side a flat face l
and on the other side a cup face n adapted to receive and fit the ball face of the
nut. The cup is designed to receive and accurately fit the nut, but it is practically
quite difficult to economically make them so that they will accurately fit without.
subsequent adjustment. In order to provide for this adjustment I make the diameter
of the ball face of the nut normally to exceed in a slight degree the diameter of
the cup of the washer, so that when brought together the nut does not fit snugly
into the bottom of the cup without heavy strain. When proper pressure is applied
the circular wall n of the cup, which is gently tapered from the bottom of the cup
outward, expands sufficiently to allow the ball face of the nut to sink fully into the
bottom of the cup, as seen in Fig. 3. At the same time this pressure serves to
bind more firmly the nut upon the bolt in case the nut is not normally tight fitting.
I prefer, however, to make the aperture of the nut normally slightly smaller than
the bolt, so that the nut must expand in being driven home on the bolt. This
makes a tight fit and a full accurate intermeshing of the threads of the bolt and nut,
such that the nut cannot be turned by hand, and will not be turned by vibration
incident to passing cars.
Fig. 3 shows the plate A slightly inclined, the washer L fitting with its flat face
flush against the plate. In forcing the nut home on the bolt the ball face of the
nut bears equally on all sides upon the wall of the cup and has no tendency to bend
the bolt. A heavy strain of the spanner upon the nut forces the cup to expand,
and the ball face of the nut embeds itself fully and accurately within the cup
of the washer. The uut however is slightly tilted in the cup owing to the inclined
position of the fish plate and washer. Whatever may be the inclination of the
plate A and washer, within practical limits, the nut will be firmly and solidly held
against the plate, the cup and nut adjusting themselves to suit the conditions.
A passing train in straining the plate A outward against the nut strains the holt
equally in the direction of its length and has no tendency to bend it. The tight
fit of the nut upon the bolt prevents their intermeshed threads from stretching, and
as the shank of the bolt is too strong to stretch the joint remains intact with the
washer firmly and rigidly seated against the plate and the nut firmly and rigidly
seated within the washer.
While I have described my invention as especially applicable to rail joints, it is
of course capable of general application. The bolt and nut, which are preferably
threaded as shown, might in some cases be made smooth, the nut being forced home
and held there by upsetting the end of the bolt. The bolt in some cases might
moreover be made without a head, being made in the form of a stud, or the bolt
might have the ball faced nut and washer applied to both ends. Again it is
obvious that in some cases the head might be made ball-faced and provided with a
cup washer the nut being of the common type or not as desired.
Various changes which will suggest themselves to any one skilled in the art might
be made without departing from the spirit of my invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare what i
claim is :-
1. The combination of a bolt, a ball faced head or nut therefor, a washer fitting
loosely on the bolt provided on one side with a cup face adapted to receive the ball
lace of the bead or nut, the diameter of the ball face slightly exceeding the normal

page_text: diameter of the cup of the washer and the cup expanding under heavy strain
ao as to accurately fit the ball face of the head or nut, substantially as set forth.
2. The combination of a bolt, a ball faced out therefor, provided with a radial
slot extending from face to face of the nut and to the aperture thereof, a washer
fitting loosely on the bolt and having a cup face adapted to receive and fit the ball
face of the nut, substantially as set forth.
3. The combination of a bolt, a normally tightly fitting ball faced nut therefor
provided with a radial slot extending from face to face of the nut and to the
aperture thereof, a washer fitting loosely on the bolt and having a cup face adapted
to receive and fit the ball face of the uut, substantially as set forth.
4. The combination of a bolt, a ball faced nut therefor provided with a radial
slot extending from face to face of the nut and to the aperture thereof, a washer
fitting loosely on the bolt and having on one side a substantially flat wearing face
and on the other side a cup face adapted to receive and fit the ball face of the nut,
substantially as set forth.
5. The combination of a bolt, a ball faced nut therefor provided with a radial
slot extending from face to face of the nut and to the aperture thereof, a washer
fitting loosely on the bolt and having a cup face adapted to receive and fit the ball
face of the nut, the diameter of the ball face of the nut slightly exceeding the
normal diameter of the cup of the washer, the cup expanding under heavy strain
so as to accurately fit the nut, substantially as set forth.
6. The combination of a bolt, a normally tightly fitting ball faced nut therefor
provided with a radial slot extending from face to face of the nut and to the
aperture thereof, a washer fitting loosely on the bolt and having a cup face
adapted to receive and fit the ball face of the nut, the diameter of the ball face of
the nut slightly exceeding the normal diameter of the cup of the washer, the cup
expanding under heavy strain so as to accurately fit the nut, substantially as set
forth.
7. The combination of a bolt, a normally tightly fitting ball faced nut therefor,
provided with a radial slot extending from face to face of the nut and to the
aperture thereof, a washer fitting loosely on the bolt and having on one side a
substantially flat wearing face and on the other side a cup face adapted to receive
and fit the ball face of the nut, substantially as set forth.
8. The combination of a bolt, a normally tightly fitting ball faced nut therefor
provided with a radial slot extending from face to face of the nut and to the
aperture thereof, a washer fitting loosely on the bolt and having on one side a
substantially flat wearing face and on the other side a cup face adapted to receive
and fit the ball face of the nut, the diameter of the ball face of the nut slightly
exceeding the normal diameter of the cup of the washer, the cup expanding under
heavy strain so as to accurately fit the nut, substantially as set forth.
Dated this Fourth day of March 1895.
HENRY BEZER.