Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TRUCK MOUNTED BRARE APPARATUS
This invention relates to truck mounted brake
mechanisms for railway cars and particularly, to brake
mechanisms of the type in which the fluid operated cylinder
for the brakes of a car is also mounted on the truck.
Most railroad freight carc; use what is known as a
foundation brake rigging. On the car body, there is an air
brake system which, ultimately, provides air to the brake
cylinder. The brake cylinder, in turn, supplies a mechanical
force, through a system of rods and levers to a connection on
the standard freight car trucks located at each end of the car.
At this point, the force is applied to a truck lever system
usually consisting of two levers and a connecting rod. The
levers move brake beams which apply force to the treads of the
wheels through renewable riction blocks or brake shoes,
retarding the rotation of the wheels.
Most freight cars have two four-wheel trucks of a
basic three-piece design, consisting of one bolster, having
a central pivot on which the car body rests, and two side
frames which support the bolster as well as the brake beams and
the bearings in which the wheel and axle sets turn. The bolster
usually rests on a nest of springs located in each side frame.
This foundation brake rigging that runs from the
brake cylinder to each end of the car i5 cumbersom~, costly and
inefficient because of many friction points. In some cases, the
car structure presents obstacles to a practical installation of
this foundation brake rigging.
It has been proposed in the prior art to overcome
the problems of foundation riggings by providing one or more
brake cylinders on each truck which are connected to brake
beams on the truck. One type of proposal is set forth in
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United States Patent No. 2,958,398, issued to G. K. Newell
on November 1, 1960, and while the system disclosed therein
has been used commercially, two brake cylinders per truck as
part of special brake beams are required, and substantial
mounting requirements are involved. Another proposal, set
forth in U.S. Patent No. 3,386,533, issued to T. S. Taylor
et al on June 4, 1968, uses standard brake beams but requires
a special bolster with a push rod extending therethrough and
a brake cylinder bolted to the bolster. A similar roposal is
set forth in U.S. Patent No. 3,406,794, issued to E. C.
Mersereau on October 22, 1968. Various other arrangements are
described in the following U.S. Patents:
No. Issue Date Patentee
2,815,092 12/3/57 W. S. Baselt
3,107,754 10/22/63 F. E. Bachman
3,266,601 8/16/66 T. S. Taylor
3,286,798 11/22/66 T. S. Taylor et al
3,298,475 1/17/67 E. C. Mersereau etal
3,335,825 8/15/67 E. C. Mersereau etal
20 3,442,358 5/6/69 E. C. Mersereau etal
In general, the prior art truck mounted braking mechanisms
require one or more of special, modified bolsters, modified
brake beams, a pair of brake cylinders, a substantial number of
levers which increases friction and slack and space not
available with some car constructions.
It is one object of the invention to overcome the prob-
lems of prior art foundation riggings by providing a truck
mounted brake mechanism which does not have the drawbacks of
prior art truck mounted brake mechanisms.
In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the
invention, a saddle, which is clamped on the bolster of a truck
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supports the brake cylinder and a first lever which connects
the piston rod of the cylinder to a first standard brake beam
for braking one pair of the truck wheels. The saddle also
supports a second lever at the side of the bolster opposite
from the side at which the cylinder is mounted, and such lever
also connects to a second standard brake beam for braking the
other pair of truck wheels. An automatic slack adjuster which
passes
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through an opening in the bolster interconnects the first and
second levers, and the actuating lever therefor extends from
the point of connection of the first lever to the first brake
beam to adjacent the saddle. An arm for the connection of a
hand brake linkage extends from the first lever adjacent the
piston rod.
The present invention thus provides a brake apparatus
for a truck having a bolster supported by wheels and having a
pair of brake shoe means for engaging said wheels5 said apparatus
comprising: a saddle having a top member and a pair of spaced
side members for engagîng said bolster/ and having mounting
means for mounting a fluid actuable, piston and cylinder assembly
at one side of one of said side members in spaced relation to
said one side member; clamping means for securing said saddle
to said bolster; a fluid actuable piston and cylinder assembly
mounted on said mounting means, the piston having a rod extending
from said cylinder toward said one side member; a first lever;
means for pivotally connecting a first portion of said first
lever to said piston rod; means for connecting a second portion
2Q of said lever spaced from said first portion thereof to one of
said brake shoe means; a second lever; fulcrum means for pivot-
ally connecting said second lever at one end to said saddle at
the side thereof opposi~e to the side thereof at wh.ich said
piston and cylinder assembly is mounted; means for connecting
the opposite end of said second lever to the other of said brake
shoe means; and brake force transmitting means for interconnect-
ing a portion of said first lever intermediate the first and
second portions thereof to an intermediate portion of said second
lever, whereby movement of said piston rod in th.e brake applying
3Q direction causes movement of said first lever, said second lever
and said brake shoe means in di.rections which will cause por-
tions of said brake shoe means to engage said wheels.
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Other objects and advantages of the present invention
will be apparent from the following detailed description of the
presently preferred embodiments thereof, which description
should be considered in conjunction with the accompanying draw-
ings in which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a railway car truck
with the braking apparatus of the invention thereon;
Figure 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary, plan view of
the embodiment shown in Figure l;
Figure 3 is an enlarged, side elevation view, partly
in section, of the embodiment shown in Figure l; and
Figure 4 is an end elevation view of a portion of the
apparatus shown in the preceding figures.
Figure 1 illustrates a typical railway car truck com-
prising a bolster 1 supported by a pair of side frames 2 and 3
which carry bearings 4 which receive the axles 5 and 6 of the
wheels 7-10 which ride on the railway rails. The railway car
is supported at one end by the bolster 1, and a similar truck
supports the opposite end of the car.
As best seen in Figure 2, a pair of conventional brake
beams 11 and 12 carry brake shoes at their opposite ends, the
shoe 13 at one end of the beam 11 and the shoe 14 at one end of
the beam 12 being shown in Figure 2 and corresponding shoes (not
shown~ being located at the opposite ends of the beams 11 and
12. When the brakes are actuated, the beams 11 and 12 press
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the brake shoes against the peripheries of the wheels 7-10 to
brake the car.
The beams 11 and 12 are movable by levers 15 and 16
respectively, and the levers 15 and 16 are interconnected by
brake force transmitting means in the form of a floating,
double acting, slack adjuster 17 oE a known type which passes
through openings, such as the opening 18, normally found in
the bolsters in use. The lever 15 is pivotally connected at
one end to the beam 11 by a pin 19, is pivotally connected
intermediate its ends to the yoke 20 of the slack adjuster 17
by a pin 21 and is pivotally connected at its opposite end to
a dead lever fulcrum or link 22 by a pin 23. The lever 16 is
pivotally connected at one end to the beam 12 by a pin 24, is
pivotally connected intermediate its ends to the yoke 25 of
the slack adjuster 17 by a pin 26 and is pivotally connected
at its opposite end by a pin 30 to the yoke 27 (see Fig. 3) of
a piston rod 28 extending from a cylinder 29. The lever 16 has
an extension 31 to which the hand brake operated member, such
as a chain or rod of a hand brake mechani~m, may be connected
for setting the brakes by hand.
The cylinder 29 and the fulcrum 22 are supported from
the bolster 1 by a saddle 32 which mounts on the bolster 1.
The saddle 32 com~rises a member 33 which is T-shaped in cross-
section and which engages the top of the bolster 1. The member
33 is secured to a pair of side members in the form of plates
34 and 35, and the plates 34 and 35 engage opposite sides of
the bolster 1. The plate 35 may be secured to the member 33 by
welding, and the member 33 may be secured by bolts 36 to a plate
37 which is secured to the plate 34, such as by welding. The
saddle 32 also comprises an angle member 38 secured at one end,
such as by welding, to the plate 35, and secured at its opposite
end, such as by welding, to a further plate 39 to which the
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cylinder 29 is secured by bolts 40. The plate 39 is also
secured to the end of the member 33, such as by welding.
The saddle 32 is clamped on the bolster 1 by a bolt
41 (see Fig. 3) which extends through a hole normally found in
the bolsters in use and which engages a threaded sleeve 42
secured to the plate 35, such as by welding. The sleeve 42
extends through a hole, s~lch as the hole 43 (see Fig. 4)
normally found in the bolsters in use. Thus, after the saddle
32 is mounted on the bolster 1, the bolt 41 is inserted through
a hole in the plate 34 and a hole in the bolster 1 and into
engagement with the sleeve 42, the threads on the end of the
bolt 41 engaging the internal threads of the sleeve 42, and
the bolt 41 is tightened thereby pulling the plates 34 and 35
against the sides of the bolster 1.
The saddle 32 also comprises a bracket 44 secured to
the face of the plate 34, such as by welding, to which the
fulcrum 22 is pivotally connected by a pin 45. In addition the
saddle 32 comprises a plate 46 (see Fig. 43 secured to the angle
member 38, such as by welding, the plate 46 having a slot there-
in for receiving the slack adjuster actuating lever 47 describedhereinafter.
As previously mentioned, the slack adjuster 17 may be
of a known type and may, for example, be a slack adjuster of
the type described and illustrated in United States Patent No.
3,406,794 or 3,850,269. The trigger or actuator of the slack
adjuster 17 is connected to a member 48 which is pivotally
connected to the actuating lever 47 by a pin 49 (see Fig. 4).
The actuating lever 47 is pivotally connected at one end to
the beam 12 and to one end of the lever 16 by the pin 24, and
movement of the opposite end of the lever 47 is limited by the
end walls of the slot in the plate 46 which act as stop means.
Accordingly, the slack adjuster 17 is actuated by the lever 47
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and operates as described in said patents to take up excess
slack or to compensate for the replacement of worn brake shoes
by new brake shoes.
The braking apparatus of the invention is easily
installed on a large number of the car trucks now in use by
merely mounting the saddle 32 on the bolster 1 and connecting
the various brake parts to the saddle 32 and to each other in
the manner described hereinbefore. It will be observed that
only one cylinder 29 is required for each truck and that, upon
the apPlication of the brakes by admitting fluid under pressure
into the cylinder 29, the rod 28 moves toward the bolster 1 but
does not pass therethrough. Furthermore, modification of the
bolster 1 is not required. Also, the apparatus of the invention
uses only two levers, levers 15 and 16, per truck, and standard
brake beams 11 and 12 are used. The lever ratios can be readily
changed, and the required hand brake force can be obtained by
the correct lever ratio and without the need for high powered,
higher priced hand brake mechanisms.
In operation, the brake shoes are pressed against the
wheels 7-10 by admitting fluid, such as air, under pressure to
the cylinder 29 by way of the fitting 29a (see Fig. 2). Such
fluid causes the piston rod 28 to move to the left, as viewed
in Fig. 3, which causes the end of the lever 16 attached to the
yoke 27 on the rod 28 to move to the left. Such movement of
the end of the lever 16 also causes the slack adjuster 17 to
move to the left while, at the same time the opposite end of
the lever 16 causes the beam 12 to move to the right. Movement
of the slack ad]uster 17 to the left causes the end of the
lever 15 connected to the beam 11 to move to the left which
moves the beam 11 to the left. Thus, the beams 11 and 12 move
in directions which cause the brake shoes thereon to engage the
wheels 7-10. When the fluid is exhausted from the cylinder 29,
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the beams ll and 12 are moved away from the wheels 7-lO in an
obvious manner. During movements of the levers 15 and 16,
excess or too little slack in the rigginy is compensated for
by the adjuster 17, the actuator of which is actuated by the
actuating lever 47.
Although preferred embodiments of the present invention
have been described and illustrated, it will be apparent to
those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made
without departing from the principles of the invention.
