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US 7,513,335 B2Granted
Railroad switch lubricator
AssigneeTranergy Corporation
InventorSudhir Kumar
Life of this patent
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AssigneeTranergy Corporation
InventorSudhir Kumar
Estimating the term…
This invention is an electro-hydraulic system to automatically lubricate railroad switches and enhance their performance. The lubrication covers switch plates, switch rods, switch points, the base of stock rail adjacent to switch rail and the top of both switch and stock rails. Wear and tear of the switch rail and lateral creep force impact are thus reduced and the switch operates smoothly. Switch related derailments, rail fractures and maintenance labor will be reduced significantly. A pressurized tank with a microprocessor controller, placed on the wayside, supplies an environmentally acceptable smooth-flowing lubricant via hoses or pipes to two nozzle holders with check valves mounted with special brackets a short distance from the switch point on both rails. Lubricant is sprayed with one or more nozzles on each rail switch to cover all or part of the switch length. One or two solenoid valves in the flow lines control the quantity of lubricant applied in each shot and the frequency of application. The solenoid valves are controlled by the programmed microprocessor. An air bubble eliminator trap is placed at a high point in the flow line to remove air trapped in the flow line and enable development of nozzle pressures comparable to the tank pressure. Thus an automatic and efficient new method of enhancing the performance of rail switches is achieved.
In a railroad switch comprising first and second stock rails fixedly mounted on tie plates, a first switch rail pivotably connected at one end to a heel and mounted laterally adjacent to a mating portion of the first stock rail for sliding movement on a plurality of switch plates into and out of closing relation with the first stock rail, a second switch rail pivotably connected at one end to a heel and mounted laterally adjacent to a mating portion of the second stock rail for sliding movement on a plurality of switch plates into and out of closing relation with the second stock rail, at least one switch rod connected to the first and second switch rails, the stock rails and switch rails each having a base and a head with the head defining a top of the rail, the improvement comprising a switch lubricator including a lubricant reservoir, a fluid supply line connected to the lubricant reservoir, a valve in the fluid supply line, a controller for opening and closing the valve to control flow through the fluid supply line, a first main nozzle connected to the fluid supply line and mounted on one of the stock rails, the first main nozzle having an aperture which is sized and aimed to produce a spray pattern of lubricant wherein at least a first portion of the projected lubricant alights on the top of the mating portion of said one stock rail and at least a second portion of the projected lubricant alights on the top of the switch rail most closely adjacent to said one stock rail.
In a railroad switch comprising a plurality of stock rails fixedly mounted on tie plates and a pair of switch rails pivotably connected to heels and mounted for sliding movement on switch plates between straight through and turnout positions, the stock rails and switch rails each having a base and a head, the head defining a top of the rail, the improvement comprising a method of reducing lateral forces on the stock rails and switch rails including the steps of mounting at least one spray nozzle in a fixed location with respect to the switch rails and applying a lubricant in a spray pattern that will result in the lubricant from said spray nozzle alighting on at least a portion of the top of one of the switch rails and on the top of one of the stock rails.
A switch lubricator for lubricating a switch having a plurality of stock rails and a pair of switch rails, each switch rail being associated with a mating portion of one of the stock rails, each of said stock rails having a base, said switch lubricator comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.