Slack adjuster for a brake system with increased take-up capacity

A railway braking system comprising:

• a pair of brake beams mounted at each end of the brake system, each of the brake beams including a compression beam, a tension beam, and a strut secured between the compression beam and tension beam;
• a brake head attached to opposing terminal ends of each end of the brake beams, each of the brake heads carrying a brake shoe thereon, wherein each of the brake shoes are positioned for engagement with a respective railway vehicle wheel during a brake application;
• a pair of force transfer members pivotally connected to the struts of the pair of brake beams;
• a rod and a brake cylinder interconnecting a first end of the pair of force transfer members;
• and
• a slack adjuster interconnecting a second end of the pair of force transfer members, wherein the slack adjuster includes:
• an overtravel housing;
• an overtravel control rod located within the housing;
• and
• an external yoke trigger configured to cooperate with the overtravel control rod located within the overtravel housing, wherein the external yoke trigger comprises at least one clamp configured to encircle and grasp the overtravel control rod, and
• a trigger ring encircling and positioned about a recessed portion of the overtravel control rod, the trigger ring cooperating with the external yoke trigger to secure the overtravel control rod within the slack adjuster, wherein the trigger ring comprises a two-piece trigger ring joined together and about the overtravel control rod via a pair of trigger studs and wherein the trigger studs cooperate with the at least one clamp to hold the overtravel control rod within the overtravel housing,
• wherein the external yoke trigger increases a let-out length of the slack adjuster.

A method of retrofitting a braking system in order to increase the let-out length while maintaining a predetermined spatial envelope of the braking system, said method comprising:

• providing a slack adjuster having an overtravel housing, locating an overtravel control rod within the housing, and providing an external yoke trigger configured to cooperate with the overtravel control rod located within the overtravel housing, wherein the external yoke trigger comprises at least one clamp configured to encircle and grasp the overtravel control rod, and encircling a portion of the overtravel control rod with a trigger ring, wherein the trigger ring is positioned about a recessed portion of the overtravel control rod, the trigger ring cooperating with the external yoke trigger to secure the overtravel control rod within the slack adjuster, wherein the trigger ring comprises a two-piece trigger ring joined together and about the overtravel control rod via a pair of trigger studs and wherein the trigger studs cooperate with the at least one clamp to hold the overtravel control rod within the overtravel housing,
• connecting the external yoke trigger to a control rod via an aperture extending through a portion of the at least one clamp, and
• replacing a first slack adjuster having a compressed length of X and a fully extended length of X+Y with a second slack adjuster having the compressed length of X and a fully extended length of X+Z, and wherein Z>Y.