Mobile rail heater and method for expanding rails
OwnerMark E. Eads, George W. Eadsinventors
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for heating railroad rails enabling a convenient and efficient expansion of railroad rails is provided by selectively moving a heat source along a rail. The apparatus includes a frame carrying a heat source such as a series of gas fired burners which direct heat toward the rail to raise the temperature of the rail. The rail heater is provided with a set of wheels enabling the heater to be rolled along a rail while heating the rail. The wheels are mounted to subframes which are shiftably mounted to the frame to permit the heater to conform to the gauge of the rail on which it travels.
Claims11
A mobile rail heated for use with a pair of spaced rails each having a longitudinal axis comprising:
- a pair of spaced apart wheeled carriage assemblies oriented for riding atop one of said spaced rails;
- burner means carried by said carriage assemblies and oriented for applying heat to said one rail;
- wheeled support means spaced laterally from said assemblies and located for riding atop the other of said rails;
- and
- frame means for interconnecting said carriage assemblies in laterally spaced relationship to said support means, including structure for varying the spacing between said carriage assemblies and said support means while maintaining said burner means in said heat-applying orientation relative to said one rail, said frame structure serving to vary said spacing in response to variable distances between said one rail and said other rail encountered during movement of said heater as a unit along said rails.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.