Back to results
US 4,202,494 AGranted
Rail mounting method and apparatus
OwnerJames A. Rumellinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Loading patent…
Loading patent…
OwnerJames A. Rumellinventor
Estimating the term…
A long life railroad track and tie arrangement and method of making same. A wooden railroad tie is impregnated and covered with a thin layer of polypropylene which serves to protect the tie both from the weather and from mechanical abuse. The tie is apertured to receive rail mounting hardware. A bottom plate is secured to the underside of the tie and carries threaded fastening means mating the tie apertures. A top plate overlies the tie, carries a channel for receiving the rail, and is apertured to mate the tie apertures. A pair of apertured clips have extended arms overlying the prepositioned rail. Bolts are passed through the clips, the top plate, the tie and into the fasteners in the bottom plate to reliably secure the rail to the tie. In addition to its application in conventional track laying or track repairing situations, the invention allows manufacture of track in transportable prefabricated track and tie sections, which may be positioned and joined on site by simply welding adjacent rails.
A method of extending the life of wooden railroad ties comprising the steps of providing a mold having a cavity for receiving the tie, supporting the tie within the cavity and closing the cavity with the respective planar surfaces of the tie spaced from associated walls of the cavity, providing a source of polypropylene at a temperature sufficiently high to allow said polypropylene to flow, injecting said polypropylene into the cavity under pressure so as to cause said polypropylene to fill any voids and cracks in the tie to form a thin protective layer on all planar surfaces of the tie, the thickness of the protective layer being defined by the spacing between the planar surfaces of the tie and the respective walls of the cavity, cooling the polypropylene to cure the protective coating, and removing the treated tie from the mold.
A method of making a railroad track assembly including a pair of rails attached to a railroad tie, comprising the steps of coating the tie with a layer of thermoplastic material that impregnates and fills any voids and cracks therein and forms a relatively thin protective layer on all plainer surfaces thereof, forming apertures in the railroad tie at each rail attachment point, providing apertured rail mounting hardware for each rail attachment point including a bottom plate, a top plate having a width substantially the same as the tie and formed with a channel and rail securing clips having a width substantially equal to the top plate, securing the bottom plate to the underside of the tie, locating the top plate on top of the tie, positioning a rail in the channel in the top plate, overlying the clips over the rail and top plate, and bolting through the clips, top plate and tie to the bottom plate to secure the rail to the tie.
A rail fastening arrangement comprising a wooden tie impregnated and coated with a layer of polypropylene for extending the useful life thereof, a base plate carrying threaded fastening means, a tie having apertures mating the fastening means on the base plate, the base plate being secured to the underside of the tie with the fastening means mating said apertures, a top plate located on top of the tie and having apertures mating said tie apertures, the top plate including means forming a channel for receiving the bottom of the rail, clip means having apertures mating the tie apertures and extended arms overlying said channel and the rail positioned therein, bolt means passing through the clip apertures, the top plate apertures and the tie apertures into the threaded fastening means on said bottom plate, whereby engagement of said bolt means with said thread receiving means securely fastens the rail to the tie.
A railroad track assembly comprising a wooden tie, a flat bottomed rail supported by said tie, said wooden tie having a coating of thermoplastic material that impregnates and fills any voids and cracks in the tie and forms a relatively thin protective layer on all planar surfaces of the tie, a base plate carrying threaded fastening means, said tie having apertures spaced similarly to the fastening means on the base plate, said base plate being secured to the underside of the tie with the fastening means mating said apertures, a top plate located on top of the tie and having apertures mating said tie apertures, said top plate including means forming a channel for receiving the bottom of the rail, clip means having apertures mating the tie apertures and arms overlying said channel and the rail positioned therein, bolt means passing through the clip apertures, top plate apertures, and tie apertures, into threaded engagement with said bottom plate fastening means for securing the rail to the tie, and said clip arms having a resiliency which permits limited movement of said rail relative to said tie and base plate while securely maintain the said in mounted position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.