Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
PCT/HU2018/050053
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1035-PCT/DM
Rail mounting device and method for fixing rails to reinforced concrete
railway sleeper
The object of the invention relates to a rail mounting device for fixing
railway rails to reinforced concrete sleepers, especially for fixing without a
baseplate, which device has a non-fixing first state and a rail fixing second
state,
and which device contains an anchoring element fixed to the reinforced
concrete
sleeper provided with an open or closed bracket piece, and a rail-clamping
plate
partially or entirely encompassed by the bracket piece of the anchoring
element.
The object of the invention also relates to a method for fixing rails laid on
reinforced concrete sleepers.
The task of the rail mounting device is to provide a firm yet flexible
connection between the railway rail and the sleeper supporting it. Numerous
rail
mounting devices have been used in the course of the history of the railways,
which may be classed into three big groups according to the method of
clamping.
The first group includes the earliest solutions using direct rail spikes or
rail
bolts, which fixed the rail directly to the sleeper. Even today this solution
is
occasionally used due to its simplicity and cost-effectiveness, however, its
significant disadvantage is that it is not suitable for fixing rails subjected
to greater
loads and the fixing of the rails soon becomes loose.
The second group includes the baseplate rail fixing solutions, in the case
of which the baseplate is fixed directly to the sleeper, and the rail is fixed
to the
baseplate using fixing devices, such as rail bolts. The advantage of the
solution is
that a clamping force of the appropriate magnitude may be established with the
rail
bolts, therefore this technology may be used on railway lines subject to
greater
loads. However, the great disadvantage of baseplate fixing is that it provides
a
connection that is overly rigid, which may lead to increase fatigue of the
connections and their breakage. A further disadvantage is that the regular
inspection of the fixtures and the tightening of the rail bolts are time-
consuming
and costly.
The flexible connections belonging to the third group successfully
overcome the disadvantages of the solutions presented above, with which it is
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possible to fix rails without the fixtures becoming loose. Rail fastening
realizing
flexible fixing is disclosed, for example, by patent application number
W00202873,
which is used in the case of a well known type of railway baseplate, the K-
plate
type. The patent specification discloses a railway rail clip that does not
have to be
compressed when fitted. The task is solved by that the rail clip has an
elongated
member that is bent so that the member's lower part forms a lower limb portion
and the member's upper part forms an upper limb portion. The lower limb
portion
forms the base portion of the rail clip, which engages the slot in the
baseplate, the
upper limb portion extends further than the lower limb portion, and its free
end
forms a toe portion of the rail clip, which rests on the rail foot. Similar
rail clip
structures are disclosed by patent documents US 3,067,947 and US 4,313,563.
The main disadvantage of these solutions is that as a result of their special
shape
the manufacture of the rail clip is expensive, and they require a baseplate,
which
increases costs even further.
It was recognised that the flexible fixing of rails to sleepers can be
provided in a simpler way and at a lower cost than the solutions according to
the
state of the art using a rail mounting device containing a rail-clamping plate
established as an unbent flat plate, and an anchoring element encompassing it
positioned at an angle to the upper plane of the sleeper, where the angle
between
the rail-clamping plate and the upper plane of the sleeper is at least 5
degrees,
preferably 5 to 20 degrees, even more preferably 10 to 15 degrees.
It was also recognised that establishing the rail-clamping plate at the
above angle to the upper plane of the sleeper makes it possible to create
sufficient
rail-clamping force using less material than in the rail fixing solutions
according to
the state of the art.
It was also recognised that if the angle between the rail-clamping plate
and the upper plane of the sleeper is at least 5 degrees, then it is
sufficient to use
a rail-clamping plate which has a maximum thickness of 6 mm. The recognition
also includes that the rail-clamping plate not exceeding 6 mm in thickness may
be
produced from sheet steel using a sheet cutting process. Sheet steel is
significantly cheaper than cast steel, and sheet cutting losses and costs are
lower
than those of casting and other commonly used processes, due to this the
production of the rail-clamping plate according to the invention is faster and
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simpler compared to the solutions according to the state of the art, and its
production costs are significantly lower.
The objective of the invention is to provide a rail mounting device and
method that is free of the disadvantages of the solutions according to the
state of
the art.
In accordance with the invention, the task was solved with the rail
mounting device according to claim 1 and with the method according to claim
12.
Further advantageous embodiments of the invention are defined in the
attached dependent claims.
Further details of the invention will be apparent from the accompanying
figures and exemplary embodiments.
Figure la is a schematic top view of a preferred embodiment of the rail
mounting device according to the invention in its first state,
Figure lb depicts a schematic top view of a preferred embodiment of the
rail mounting device according to the invention in its second state,
Figure 2a is the cross-section of the rail mounting device according to
figure la taken on the line A-A,
Figure 2b is the cross-section of the rail mounting device according to
figure lb taken on the line A-A,
Figure 3a is a schematic top view of another embodiment of the rail
mounting device according to the invention in its first state,
Figure 3b is a schematic top view of the rail mounting device in figure 3a in
its second state,
Figure 4a is the cross-section of the rail mounting device according to
figure 3a taken on the line A-A,
Figure 4b is the cross-section of the rail mounting device according to
figure 3b taken on the line A-A,
Figure 5a illustrates the fixing of the rail mounting device according to
figure 4a,
Figure 5b illustrates the release of the fixing of the rail mounting device
according to figure 4b.
Figures la and lb are schematic top views of a preferred embodiment of
the rail mounting device 10 according to the invention. For the purpose of
clarity
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those parts that would otherwise be covered in top views are shown in figures
la
and 1 b with dotted lines.
The rail mounting device 10 serves for directly or indirectly fixing railway
rails 12 to reinforced concrete sleepers. In the present specification
indirect fixing
is understood to mean that a spacer, such as an electrically insulating plate,
is
positioned between the rail 12 and the reinforced concrete sleeper 14, in this
way
the rail 12 and the reinforced concrete sleeper 14 do not come into direct
contact
with each other. Direct fixing is understood to mean the case when there is
direct
contact between the rail 12 and the reinforced concrete sleeper 14. The device
10
has a first state when it is not fixing the rail 12 and a second state when it
is fixing
the rail 12, which first and second state are presented in figures 2a and 2b
respectively.
In the context of the present invention reinforced concrete sleeper 14 is
understood to mean the sleepers commonly used for railway tracks, such as pre-
stressed reinforced concrete sleepers, as is known by a person skilled in the
art.
The device 10 contains an anchoring element 18 fixed to the reinforced
concrete sleeper 14 provided with an open or closed bracket piece 16, and a
rail-
clamping plate 20 partially or entirely encompassed by the bracket piece 16 of
the
anchoring element. The anchoring element 18 has an upper surface which is
formed substantially flat and which is at an angle to an upper plane 22 of the
reinforced concrete sleeper 14 such that the distance between the first edge
of the
upper surface of the anchoring element 18 closer to the rail 12 and the upper
plane 22 of the reinforced concrete sleeper 14 is smaller than the distance
between the second edge of the upper surface of the anchoring element 18 more
distant from the rail 12 and the upper plane 22 of the reinforced concrete
sleeper
14.
The anchoring element 18 is fixed to the reinforced concrete sleeper 14 in
a releasable or non-releasable manner. A releasable connection may be
provided,
for example, using the bolt 15 shown in figures 2a and 2b. The advantage of
this is
that the anchoring element 18 may even be fixed subsequently to the already
laid
reinforced concrete sleeper 14. It should be noted that optionally the
anchoring
element 18 may be fixed to the reinforced concrete sleeper 14 in other ways,
by
using clips, threaded rods, etc., as is known by a person skilled in the art.
Non-
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releasable fixing may be provided, for example, with casting, or with the use
of
special adhesives, such as concrete adhesive. The embodiments shown in figures
3a, 3b, 4a, and 4b only differ from that presented above in that the anchoring
element 18 has a lower fixing piece 17 concreted into the reinforced concrete
sleeper 14. The concreting may optionally take place after the production of
the
reinforced concrete sleeper 14, or preferably during the manufacture of the
reinforced concrete sleeper 14 simultaneously with the casting of the
reinforced
concrete sleeper 14. In the case that the anchoring element 18 is in fixed
state the
lower fixing piece 17 preferably has a shape that curves under the rail 12, as
can
be seen in figures 4a and 4b. The fixing can be strengthened further with this
arrangement. Naturally, optionally the use of a differently shaped (e.g.
straight,
plate-shaped, etc.) lower fixing piece 17 is conceivable, as is obvious for a
person
skilled in the art.
The bracket piece 16 of the anchoring element 18 partially or completely
encompasses the rail-clamping plate 20, as can be seen in figures la and lb.
In
the case of a particularly preferred embodiment the anchoring element 18 is
established as a structurally single element, preferably as a metal casting.
With
respect to its material the anchoring element 18 may be made from iron, steel,
or
other metal alloy. Optionally an embodiment is conceivable in the case of
which
the anchoring element 18 is established from several parts fitted together, in
this
way, for example, the bracket piece 16 and the lower fixing piece 17 may even
be
manufactured separately. The various parts may be fixed to one another by a
releasable (e.g. with bolts) or a non-releasable connection (e.g. by welding).
The shape of the rail-clamping plate 20 may be rectangular, as can be
seen in figures la and lb, or other planar piece that, for example, narrows
towards
the second end. The rail mounting device 10 is established in its first state
illustrated in figures 2a and 4a with the rail-clamping plate 20 at an angle
to the
upper plane 22 of the reinforced concrete sleeper 14 in such a way that the
distance between the first end of the rail-clamping plate 20 closer to the
rail 12 and
the upper plane 22 of the reinforced concrete sleeper 14 is smaller than the
distance between the second end of the rail-clamping plate 20 more distant
from
the rail 12 and the upper plane 22 of the reinforced concrete sleeper 14.
In the context of the present invention the distance between the first end of
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the rail-clamping plate 20 and the upper plane 22 is understood to mean the
length
of the section from the first end to the upper plane 22 that is perpendicular
to the
upper plane 22. Similarly, the distance between the second end of the rail-
clam ping plate 20 and the upper plane 22 is understood to mean the length of
the
section from the second end to the upper plane 22 that is perpendicular to the
upper plane 22. In the present specification the upper plane 22 of the
reinforced
concrete sleeper 14 is viewed as being the plane of the surface of the
reinforced
concrete sleeper 14 under the rail 12 directly supporting the rail 12. For the
sake of
clarity, the upper plane 22 has been marked by a dotted line in figures 2a and
2b.
The rail-clamping plate 20 of the rail mounting device 10 according to the
invention is established as an unbent flexible flat plate, in other words as a
planar
leaf-spring. In the case of a particularly preferred embodiment the angle
between
the rail-clamping plate 20 and the upper plane 22 of the reinforced concrete
sleeper is at least 5 degrees, preferably 5 to 20 degrees, even more
preferably 10
to 15 degrees. In this case it is sufficient to select the thickness of the
rail-clamping
plate 20 to be 6 mm. The advantage of this is that the rail-clamping plate 20
not
exceeding 6 mm in thickness may be produced from sheet steel using a sheet
cutting process, in other words the rail-clamping plate 20 may be produced
from
cut sheet steel no thicker than 6 mm. Sheet steel is significantly cheaper
than cast
steel, and sheet cutting losses and costs are lower than those of casting and
other
commonly used forming processes. As a consequence of the above, the
production costs of the rail-clamping plate 20 are significantly lower than
those of
the solutions according to the state of the art, which, taking into
consideration the
large number of rail-clamping plates 20 required for railway construction,
represents a significant economic advantage.
With the rail mounting device 10 in its second state, in other words when
fixing the rail 12 to the reinforced concrete sleeper 14, the rail-clamping
plate 20 is
fixed to the anchoring element 18, preferably in a releasable way, so that its
first
end is laid onto the base 12a of the rail 12, and the shape of the rail-
clamping
plate 20 is a convex curve viewed from the direction of the upper plane 22 of
the
reinforced concrete sleeper 14, as can be seen in figure 2b and 4b. In the
case of
a preferred embodiment the first end of the rail-clamping plate 20 is provided
with
an electrically insulating covering 24, which prevents electric contact
between the
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rail 12 and the rail-clamping plate 20. The insulating covering 24 is fixed to
the first
end with a retention lock, for example, but naturally the use of other fixing
methods
is also conceivable, such as the use of an adhesive, for example.
In the case of the embodiment shown in figures 4a and 4b the reinforced
concrete sleeper 14 has a first surface 50 and a second surface 60 protruding
out
of the plane of the first surface 50, and the anchoring element 18 rests on
the first
and second surfaces 50, 60. The first surface 50 is preferably planar in shape
and
coincides with the upper plane 22. The second surface 60 is also planar, and
in
the way illustrated in figures 4a and 4b it is at an angle to the first plane
50.
Naturally, an embodiment is optionally conceivable in the case of which the
first
and second surfaces 50, 60 are not planar, instead they are curved, arched,
undulating, broken, etc. surfaces. In the case of a particularly preferred
embodiment, the vertical thickness of the part of the anchoring element 18
resting
on the second surface 60, in other words the thickness of the part of the
anchoring
element 18 between the surface 60 and the rail-clamping plate 20 is less than
the
vertical thickness of the part resting on the first surface 50, in other words
the part
of the anchoring element 18 between the surface 50 and the rail-clamping plate
20. The shape of the top view of the anchoring element 18 may be, for example,
rectangular, or, as indicated with a broken line in figures 3a and 3b, a
planar piece
that narrows towards its end.
The rail mounting device 10 according to the invention also preferably
contains an electrically insulating spacer element 28 arranged on the rail 12
side
of the anchoring element 18 fixed to the reinforced concrete sleeper 14, the
purpose of which is to prevent electrical conductance between the rail 12 and
the
rail mounting device 10. The spacer element 28 is preferably made from
plastic,
but, optionally the use of other non-electrically conducting materials is
conceivable, such as composites, as is known by a person skilled in the art.
An
electrically insulating sheet 26 is preferably arranged between the rail 12
and the
reinforced concrete sleeper 14.
With the rail mounting device 10 in its second state the rail-clamping plate
20 is fixed to the anchoring element 18. The fixing may take place in a way
that
provides a releasable or non-releasable connection. In the case of the
embodiment shown in figures 2a and 2b the end of the anchoring element 18 more
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distant from the rail 12 is provided with a flange 29 preventing the movement
of
the rail-clamping plate 20 in the case that the rail mounting device 10 is in
its
second state, which flange 29 is preferably formed out of the material of the
anchoring element 18. The flange 29 supports the rail-clamping plate 20 from
the
rear thereby preventing it from slipping off the rail 12.
In the case of the exemplary embodiment shown in figures 4a and 4b the
second end of the rail-clamping plate 20 and the anchoring element 18 are
provided with a depression 30a and a protrusion 30b fitting into the
depression
30a, which together form a retention lock for preventing the rail mounting
device
10 from getting from the second state to the first state. The protrusion 30b
is
formed in the anchoring element 18 and the depression 30a is formed in the
rail-
clamping plate 20. Optionally, an embodiment is also conceivable in the case
of
which the arrangement is the other way around, the protrusion 30b is to be
found
in the rail-clamping plate 20, and the depression 30a in the anchoring element
18.
The object of the invention also relates to a method for fixing rails 12 to
reinforced concrete sleepers 14, during which the rail mounting device 10 in
its
first state presented above in the vicinity of the railway rail 12 is provided
in such a
way that the first end of the rail-clamping plate 20 encompassed by the
bracket
piece 16 faces the railway rail 12. In the case of a preferred embodiment, in
practice this takes place so that at the site of the construction of a railway
line a
reinforced concrete sleeper 14 provided with the rail mounting device 10
according
to the invention is laid on the track bed of the railway line, then the
railway rail 12
is laid next to the rail mounting device 10 in the position shown in figures
4a and
4b. Naturally, if the anchoring element 18 is fixed to the reinforced concrete
sleeper 14 with a bolt 15, then the fixing may also take place after the
reinforced
concrete sleeper 14 has been laid (e.g. in the case of renovating a railway
line).
In the case of a particularly preferred embodiment a rail mounting device
10 is provided on each of the two sides of the railway rail 12, essentially
opposite
one another, with which the rail 12 is fixed to the reinforced concrete
sleeper 14
from two sides. With this solution movement of the rail 12 in directions
perpendicular to the railway line can be prevented.
In the second step of the method according to the invention the rail-
clamping plate 20 is pushed towards the rail 12, in other words the rail
mounting
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device 10 is taken from the first state shown in figure 2a to the second state
shown
in figure 2b. In the case of a preferred embodiment, the rail-clamping plate
20 is
pushed towards the rail 12 by hitting the second end of the rail-clamping
plate 20
one or more times using a traditional hammer, or, for example, using the tool
40
illustrated in figure 5a. The tool 40 may be established using a traditional
hammer
by replacing the wooden handle of the hammer with a metal handle, and by
machining the head of the hammer into the shape shown in figure 5a. The great
advantage of the rail mounting device 10 according to the invention is that
getting
it from the first state to the second state does not necessarily require the
use of a
special dedicated tool.
The rail-clamping plate 20 is at an angle to the upper plane 22 according
to that described above. By pushing the rail-clamping plate 20 towards the
rail 12,
the first end is forced up against the base 12a of the rail 12, and the first
end rises
vertically, while the bracket piece 16 does not permit the rail-clamping plate
20 to
move upwards. As a result, the rail-clamping plate 20 bends in such a way that
it
takes on a convex curved shape viewed from the upper plane 22 of the
reinforced
concrete sleeper 14. As a result of the bending spring force is created in the
rail-
clamping plate 20, which forces the rail 12 onto the reinforced concrete
sleeper 14.
As the rail-clamping plate 20 is established at an angle to the upper plane 22
of
the reinforced concrete sleeper 14 as described above, by pushing the rail-
clamping plate 20 towards the rail 12 the vertical increase in height of the
first end
is greater than if the rail-clamping plate 20 were parallel or at an inverted
angle to
the upper plane 22. As a result of this as with the same amount of
displacement
the first end of the rail-camping plate rises more than the ends of parallel
clamping
plates or clamping plates at an inverted angle, the use of a shorter and
thinner rail-
clamping plate 20 is sufficient to create the same magnitude of clamping
force.
This results in a saving of material and, ultimately in a reduction of
production
costs. According to this recognition, the aforementioned advantages come into
effect if the angle between the rail-clamping plate 20 and the upper plane 22
of the
reinforced concrete sleeper 14 is at least 5 degrees, preferably 5 to 20
degrees,
even more preferably 10 to 15 degrees. According to experience, in the case of
angles in excess of 20 degrees it is difficult or impossible to get the rail
mounting
device 10 from first state to second state.
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The rail-clamping plate 20 is fixed to the anchoring element 18, as a result
the rail mounting device 10 is taken from the first state to the second state.
In the
case of a preferred embodiment the rail-clamping plate 20 is fixed to the
anchoring
element 18 with the flange 29 presented previously in such a way that the rail-
clamping plate 20 is pushed towards the rail 12 up until the second end of the
rail-
clamping plate 20 gets behind the flange 29 (see figure 2b). Optionally the
rail-
clamping plate 20 may be fixed with a retention lock containing a depression
30a
and a protrusion 30b, as can be seen in figure 4b, or an embodiment is
conceivable in the case of which the rail-clamping plate 20 is fixed to the
anchoring element 18 in another way, such as with a pin, etc.
In order to release the fixing of the rail 12 the device 10 is taken from
second state to first state by using the tool 40 in the way shown in figure
5b, for
example, so that the head of the tool 40 is placed on the rail 12 and the
first end of
the rail-clamping plate 20, then the handle of the tool 40 is turned in the
appropriate direction. As a consequence of the force exerted on the first end
of the
rail-clamping plate 20 the protrusion 30b pops out of the depression 30a (or
the
second end of the rail-clamping plate 20 jumps over the flange 29), and the
retention lock is released.
The advantage of the rail mounting device 10 according to the invention is
that there is no need for a base plate nor for a specially shaped rail-
clamping
plate, which significantly reduce the production costs. A further advantage is
that
by appropriately selecting the angle between the rail-clamping plate 20 and
the
upper plane 22 of the reinforced concrete sleeper 14, it is sufficient to use
a rail-
clamping plate 20 of maximum 6 mm thickness, which may be produced from
sheet steel using a sheet cutting process quickly and cost-effectively as
compared
to the existing solutions.
As the rail-clamping plate 20 does not rest directly upon the reinforced
concrete sleeper 14 anywhere, the pitting effect that significantly reduces
the fixing
effect can be avoided, due to which the lifetime can be significantly
extended.
In terms of implementation, the amount of material used, the price of
production of the materials used, the speed and simplicity of installation and
construction, the rail mounting device 10 according to the invention
represents a
significant advance as compared to the solutions according to the state of the
art.
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Other alternative solutions as compared to the embodiments presented
here will be apparent to a person skilled in the art without departing from
the scope
of protection determined by the attached claims.
Amended sheet
