An Improved Device for Securing the Ends of Rails.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Mar., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 5th Dec., 1892-Accepted, 7th Jan., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Device for Securing the Ends of Rails.
I WILLIAM WILSON HORN of the firm of Horn & Son of 151 Strand in the
County of Middlesex Patent Agent do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(a communication to me from James Rigby of Detroit in the State of Michigan
United States of America Inventor) to be as follows:—
This invention relates to a locking device for securing the ends of railroad rails.
The object of my invention is to provide a locking device which is simple in
construction effective in operation, a device which can be readily applied to the
ends of the rails and conveniently detached therefrom when it is desired to remove
and replace a rail.
An especial object of my invention is to provide a lock which shall prevent
undue wear and vibration at the ends of the rails, which shall securely hold the
ends together in perfect alignment and prevent spreading, and also which shall
deaden and prevent much of the noise and clatter due to the passage of the wheels
over the adjacent ends of the rails.
In laying the rail-road rails it is important to provide a lock which will not only
securely hold them together, but one which can be quickly placed in position and
can be conveniently removed when occasion arises for removing a rail and by my
improved lock I secure these advantageous results.
Very little departure from the construction and arrangement of the railroad rails
and fish plates now in use is required in applying my locking device, and therefore
little expense is incurred in securing its advantages. The ends of the rails require
no work upon them excepting the cutting of a slot or tenon from the upper face
down into the head of the rail.
This slot may be readily formed by boreing and milling out the material in a
well known manner, and preferably made with a curved end or bottom.
The locking device is preferably composed of a head corresponding in shape and
cross-section to the head of the rail, a stem or web corresponding in height and
thickness to the web of the rail, and a foot or base corresponding to the foot of the
rail, so that the lock when in position, nearly registers with all parts of the rail,
and makes a neat and substantial joint. The head is provided with one or more
longitudinal lugs or tenons extending on a line with the rails and adapted to fit in
the slots or mortises in the heads of the rails and when in position be flush with the
top thereof.
The foot of the lock is provided on each side with a locking flange, projecting
longitudinally on each side of such foot, and having downwardly curved outer
edges adapted to overlap and embrace the foot of the adjacent ends of the rails.
These locking flanges do not extend up to the stem but leave recesses between their
inner edges and the vertical walls of such stem, of sufficient width to receive the
lower edges of the fish plates.
The locking flanges give additional strength to the locking device, and rest upon
the foot of the rails for better holding it in position and also for securely holding
the lower or foot portions of the rails in place.
Some of the locking devices may be made with a single projecting lug or tenon on
one side only of the head, to adapt it for use with the adjacent end of one rail,
which is not provided with a mortise or slot.
In this case the locking flanges will still serve to lock the foot pieces of both
rails.
The ends of the rails are cut off square and straight so that they may be laid in

page_text: the well known manner familiar to workmen, because they are set a sufficient
distance apart to receive the locking device. This is readily dropped into position
between the adjacent ends of the rails, so that the tenons fit in the slots, and the
locking flanges overlap the foot pieces. The fish plates of the usual form are then
placed in position on each site of the web, and secured by four bolts in the well-
known inanner.
It will thus be seen that the locking device is readily placed in position, and that
the rails may be laid by unskilled workmen, and without material departure from
their usual routine of laying the rails. The locking device when in position
securely holds the ends of the rails in perfect alignment, and prevents vibration
thereof, so that the noise usually arising from the passing wlieels is very much
deadened and the jarring motion of the train is much reduced.
Should it be desired to remove one of the rails the locking device may be readily
lifted out of position after removal of the fish plates and the new rail may be
quickly placed in position and the ends again locked in place by the locking device.
Modifications to suit various sections of rails or fish plates may be adapted to the
several requirements without departing from the spirit of my invention.
Dated this Fifth day of March 1892.
HORN & SON,
Applicant's Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Device for Securing the Ends of Rails.
I, WILLIAM WILSON HORN of the firm of Horn & Son, of 151 Strand, in the
County of Middlesex, Patent Agent do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(a communication to me from abroad from James Rigby, of Detroit in the State
of Michigan, United States of America, Inventor), 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 locking device for securing the ends of railroad rails.
The object of my invention is to provide a locking device which is simple in
construction, effective in operation, a device which can be readily applied to the
ends of the rails and conveniently detached therefrom when it is desired to remove
and replace a rail.
An especial object of my invention is to provide a lock which shall prevent undue
wear and vibration at the ends of the rails, which shall securely hold the ends
together in perfect alignment and prevent spreading, and also which shall deaden
and prevent much of the noise and clatter due to the passage of the wheels over
the adjacent ends of the rails.
In laying the rail-road rails it is important to provide a lock which will not only
securely hold them together, but one which can be quickly placed in position and
can be conveniently removed when occasion arises for removing rail, and by my
improved lock I secure these advantageous results.
I will now describe my invention in detail by reference to the accompanying
drawings, in which―
Figure 1, represents a perspective view of the adjacent ends of two rail-road
rails, connected together by means of my locking device.
Figure 2, represents a similar view of the parts detached and on an enlarged
scale, for better showing their construction.
Figure 3, represents a top plan view showing the lock and rails in position.
Figure 4, represents a perspective view of the lock of modified form.
Figure 5, represents a vertical transverse section on the lines z., Figure 3.
Figure 6, represents a vertical section and
Figure 7, a side elevation of modified forms of my invention.
Very little departure from the construction and arrangement of the rail-road

page_text: rails and fish plates now in use, is required in applying my locking device and
therefore little expense is incurred in securing the advantages of my locking device.
The ends of the rails A require no work upon them except the cutting of a slot or
tenon a from the upper face down into the head of the rail, as clearly shown in
Figure 2. This slot may be readily formed by boring and milling out the material
in a well known manner, and preferably made with a curved end and bottom, as
shown.
My locking device H is preferably composed of a head D, corresponding in shape
and cross section to the head of the rail-a stem or web E corresponding in height
and thickness to the web C of the rail and a foot or base F corresponding to the
foot B of the rail so that the lock when in position nearly registers with all parts
of the rail and makes a neat and substantial joint. The head D is provided
with one or two longitudinal lugs or tenons d extending on a line with the rails and
adapted to fit in the slots or mortises a in the heads of the rails and when in position
be flush with the top thereof, as shown in Figures 1 and 3.
The foot of the lock H is provided on each side with a locking flange Fl
projecting longitudinally on each side of such foot and having downwardly curved
outer edges adapted to overlap and embrace the foot B of the adjacent ends of
the rails, as shown in Figures 1, 3, and 5. These locking flanges F₁ do not extend
up to the stem E but leave recesses e between their inner edges and the vertical
walls of such stem of sufficient width to receive the lower edges of the fish plates L
as shown in Figure 5.
The locking Hanges F1 give additional strength to the locking device and rest
upon the foot B of the rails for better holding it in position and also for securely
holding the lower or foot portions of the rails in place.
The locking device H is preferably made of cast steel and may be formed in a
single casting. After the casting is removed from the mould, it is preferably
placed in a die and properly forged to give strength and durability.
Some of the
locking devices H may be made with a single projecting lug or tenon d, on one side
only of the head D as shown in Figure 4, to adapt it for use with the adjacent end
of one rail which is not provided with a mortise or slot a. In this case the locking
flanges F will still serve to lock the foot pieces of both rails.
The locking device H is made and used in this form only as a convenience in
case of necessity of using a rail which is not mortised at the end for receiving a
tenon d. This construction saves the time and expense which would be required to
file or saw off one of the tenons d.
This is
As shown in the drawings the ends of the rails are cut off square and straight
so that they may be laid in the well known manner familiar to workmen, because
they are set a sufficient distance apart to receive the locking device H.
readily dropped into position between the adjacent ends of the rails so that the
tenons fit in the slots a and the locking flanges overlap the foot pieces B.
The fish plates L of the usual form are then placed in position on each side of the
web E and secured by four bolts, in the well known manner.
It will thus be seen that the locking device is readily placed in position and
that the rails may be laid by unskilled workmen and without material departure
from their usual routine of laying the rails. The locking device when in position
securely holds the ends of the rails in perfect alignment and prevents vibration
thereof, so that the noise usually arising from the passing wheels is very much
deadened and the jarring motion of the train is much reduced.
Should it be desired to remove one of the rails the locking device may be
readily lifted out of position after removal of the fish plates and the new rail
may be quickly placed in position and the ends again locked in place by the locking
device.
Figures 6 and 7 illustrate my locking device in a modified form and adapted
for use in connection with an angle fish plate L' one or more of which may be
In this case the foot F of the locking device is extended laterally on one or
used.

page_text: both sides so as to embrace the base flange m of the fish plate L' as well as the
foot B of the rail, as clearly shown in Figure 6.
The locking flange F in this modification is provided with a recess el extending
between it and the foot F for receiving the base flange m of the fish plate and in
addition has its inner edge cut off comparatively short that is quite a distance from
the web E so as to form a larger recess e than that shown in Figure 5 in order
to permit the base flange m of the angle fish plate L' to be readily slipped into
place.
For the purpose of more readily adjusting the angle fish plate L¹ in position,
the downwardly turned edge of the base flange m is cut away to a width corre-
sponding to the longitudinal length of the locking flange F¹.
In practice I may construct the locking device H on one side of the recess e to
accommodate the angle fish plate and on the other side without such recess and,
as shown in Figure 5 to accommodate an ordinary straight fish plate L.
A more special object of this modified form of locking device is to adapt it for
application on railroads where angle fish plates are already in use.
In laying a
new rail-road I preferably employ the locking device and the simple straight fish-plate
shown in Figure 5 as being simpler in construction and quite as effective for the
purposes indicated.
I wish it understood however, that my locking device can be
applied and used in connection with both the single ear fish plate and an angle fish
plate and is not confined to either form alone.
Though have shown in Figure 6 an angle fish plate on each side of the rail, I
may in practice use an angle fish plate L' on one side and a straight fish plate on
the other side of the rail.
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. The combination with the rails having slots or mortises out in the heads at
their adjacent ends of the locking device formed with a head, stem and foot corre-
sponding in dimensions and contour with the head, web and foot of the rail, the
head having one or more longitudinal tenons adapted to fit into the mortises in the
heads of the rails, and said stem being freely exposed and unencumbered at its
sides, substantially as described.
2. The combinations of the rails having slots or mortises cut in the heads at their
adjacent ends, of a locking device having a head, stem and foot, the head being
provided with longitudinal tenons adapted to fit into the mortises in the heads of
the rails and the foot having lateral locking flanges adapted to embrace the foot
portions of adjacent rails, substantially as described.
3. The rails having mortises cut in their heads at adjacent ends in combination
with the locking device the heads of which are provided with tenons & and the foot
of which is provided with lateral locking flanges and having 'recesses e between
such flanges and the stem or web E for receiving the fish plate L substantially as
described.
4. The combination with the rails having slots or mortises cut in the heads at
their adjacent ends, of a locking device having a head, stem and foot, the head
being provided with longitudinal tenons, adapted to fit into the mortises in the
heads of the rails, and the foot having a lateral locking flange containing a recess e¹
for receiving the base flange m and an angle fish plate L' on one or both sides of
the rail substantially as described.
Dated this 5th dor of Danambar 1905
HORN & SON,
Applicant's Agents.