Improvements in Apparatus for Preventing Railway and other Vehicles from Leaving the Rails.
Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Apr., 1887
Specification Accepted, 31st May, 1887.
DIFICATION
Improvements in Apparatus for Preventing Railway and other
Vehicles from Leaving the Rails.
I, ISIDRO PLOU of Barcelona in the Kingdom of Spain, Manufacturer, 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 an apparatus for preventing railway-and other vehicles
from running off the rails and consists in two parts, the upper part being attached to
the frame work of the car or vehicle and connected with the lower part which embraces
the head of the rail by means of two angle plates arranged on each side of the
latter.
Referring to the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a side view and Fig. 2 a
longitudinal section of the apparatus.
The upper part consists of two pillars I and H the former carrying the flange R
attached to the car by means of bolts K. The pillar I is hollow and its interior is
threaded for receiving the pillar H which is adapted to be adjusted in its height
according to the distance of the frame work of the car from the rail.-In case this
distance should be very large, a supplementary ring I may be employed.
For the sake of greater strength, the pillar I terminates below in a ring N provided
with two hooks for receiving the two adjustable links T which are attached by means
of hooks K¹ to the flange R and therefore to the frame work of the car.
The lower part C is likewise hollow, its inner diameter being smaller at its ter-
mination than in the centre to allow it to receive the enlarged extremity L of the
pillar H; the part C is formed in two corresponding parts united by means of
bolts D.
The upper part of the part C is provided with four arms ✗¹ corresponding to
which are four similar arms X on the piece H. The upper arms are connected to the
lower arms by means of springs A the force of which is regulated by screw spindles A'.
The pillar H may have eight arms X instead of four to allow the arms X to be more
easily and rapidly placed over the arms X¹.

page_text: The springs A have for their purpose to support the lower part C to maintain the
apparatus always at the same height.
In the cavity in C is lodged a spring G which presses against the pillar H in order
that the two pieces C and H may be always maintained at a convenient height with
regard to the car.
The two halves of the piece Care provided respectively with horizontally extending
platforms F F for supporting the bearings S and S¹ which carry the shafts of the
wheels O running upon the rail E and for maintaining at the same time the apparatus
at the most convenient distance with regard to the head of the rail.
The platforms F and F are enlarged at their central part and are extended down-
wards to form the claw plates P and P¹ which embrace the head of the rail and
prevent the car from becoming detached therefrom.
To avoid wear and tear of the claws P and P¹ by their sliding on the rails, they
are provided with studs or blocks Q and Q¹, the shanks of which are fixed in recosses
or perforations in the claws.
The improved apparatus may be employed for ordinary rails provided that they
have the necessary section or a central rail may be arranged with any suitable section
for engaging in the claw plates P and P¹.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this invention and
in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare, that what I claim is:
An apparatus for preventing railway and other vehicles from leaving the rails,
consisting of an extensible pillar attached to the car and telescopically movable in a
lower sleeve attached thereto by springs, the said lower sleeve carrying two wheels
and claw plates surrounding the head of the rail, substantially as described
and illustrated.