1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to rail vehicle braking systems and, more specifically, to an improved brake cylinder piston assembly.
2. Description of the Related Art
Railway brake pistons of the type used on Association of American Railroads (AAR) cars are typically heavy and include a large number of parts that must be individually machined. For example, brake cylinder piston heads are made from cast iron and then riveted to a steel hollow rod. Additional machining is often necessary during the assembly process to address mill-run variations, such as in the outer diameter of the hollow rod, and for the line-bore drilling that is required prior to riveting the hollow rod to the cast piston head. Accordingly, there is a need for a brake cylinder piston assembly that eliminates the need for extra machining and provides for a simpler assembly.
The present invention comprises a brake cylinder piston assembly having a composite piston head having a bore formed therethrough, a cup positioned in the bore and coupled to the piston head, and a hollow rod securely welded to the cup. The cup is coupled to the piston head by a series of fingers that extend around the bore of the piston head and grasp the rim of the cup via a set of locking tabs that lock to the rim of the cup. The bore of the piston head includes a first portion having a first inner diameter and a second portion having a second inner diameter that is greater than the first inner diameter. Correspondingly, the cup has a first portion having a first outer diameter and a second portion having a second outer diameter that is larger than the first outer diameter. When the cup and piston head are assembled, the first outer diameter of the cup is securely seated in the first inner diameter of the bore and the second outer diameter of the cup is securely seated in the second inner diameter of the bore. The cup includes a central cavity and the hollow rod is positioned in the cavity. A plastic load disc having a hemispherical cavity may be positioned within the end of the hollow rod that is secured to the cup to absorb high energy hand brake releases.
The present invention will be more fully understood and appreciated by reading the following Detailed Description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout, there is seen in
Referring to
Piston assembly 10 is assembled by aligning bore 32 of piston head 12 with the outer diameter of cup 14 and then pressing the two elements together axially until shoulder 36 of bore 32 of piston head 12 engages shoulder 28 of cup 14 and locking fingers 40 engage rim 18 of cup 14 so that locking tabs 42 on the ends of fingers 40 securely grasp rim 18 of cup 14.
Referring to
Assembly 10 is interchangeable with prior art assemblies, but eliminates the need to machine piston head 12 to fit hollow rod 16, eliminates blind riveting operations, provides a snap-together assembly of the pre-profiled composite piston head 12 to hollow rod 16. Assembly 10 also provides an energy and load distributing load disc 52 and integrates a piston guide ring into composite piston head 12. As a result, assembly 10 is lighter weight, and composite piston head 12 will not corrode or contaminate the brake cylinder assembly with corrosion products.
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Number | Date | Country |
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Entry |
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International Search Report Form PCT/ISA/220, International Application No. PCT/&S2014/068380, pp. 1-11, dated Aug. 3, 2015. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20160159377 A1 | Jun 2016 | US |