Patent Application
20160060833
1. Field of the Disclosure
This disclosure relates to a locomotive plow. More particularly, this disclosure relates to a moveable sand plow for a locomotive suitable for operating in sandy environments.
2. Description of the Related Art
Railroads that operate in desert environments have observed that drifting sand can quickly cause a buildup of sand on the rails. If not removed, this buildup can lead to excessive wheel wear. Sand buildup can even lead to derailments. The present disclosure addresses these problems.
The present disclosure relates to a moveable plow for a locomotive sand plow system. In one embodiment the moveable plow comprises a body and a detachable lip.
The body has a width and defines a plane substantially orthogonal to a plane defined by a rail. The body extends from an inner vertical edge inward of the rail to an outer vertical edge outward of the rail and from a lower edge to a top edge. The body forms a curl at its top edge along substantially the entire body width to channel the flow of sand outwardly. The curl is most pronounced at the outer vertical edge.
The lip is removably affixed to and extends downwardly from the body. The lip has a substantially linear first edge and a parallel, opposing substantially linear second edge. The lip is invertible between a first position in which the first edge is facing down and a second position in which the second edge is facing down.
In one aspect of the disclosure the moveable plow is positioned over the rail so that the moveable plow straddles the rail and contacts the rail.
In a further aspect of the disclosure the moveable plow is attached to a bogie by a pneumatically operated height adjusting mechanism that can raise or lower the moveable plow.
In another aspect of the disclosure the moveable plow and rail define a sweep angle equal to or greater than an angle of repose of the sand in the surrounding environment.
In still another aspect of the disclosure a method of positioning a plurality of forward facing moveable plows is provided, where each of the moveable plows is mounted to one of a series of connected locomotives. The method may comprise the steps of activating a plow system using a single switch; the plow system determining which direction the locomotives are moving and the plow system automatically adjusting the height of each of the moveable plows until each moveable plow contacts a set of rails.
While this disclosure may be embodied in many forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail one or more embodiments with the understanding that this disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of the principles of the disclosure and is not intended to limit the disclosure to the illustrated embodiments.
Turning to the drawings, there is shown in
The set of fixed front plows 12 may comprise two fixed front plows 12 arranged at an angle to each other and positioned in front in the direction or travel. The fixed front plows 12 may be set highest from the tracks of the three sets of plows and can move large amounts of sand piled high on the tracks if necessary. The fixed front plows 12 may be fixed to the underframe of the locomotive 100
The set of fixed rear plows 14 may comprise two rear fixed rear plows 14 arranged at an angle and joined together to form a single, unitary V-shape structure positioned behind the fixed front plows 12. The fixed rear plows 14 are designed to move most of the remaining sand out of the way.
The moveable plows 16 may be height adjustable to take into account variation in wheel diameter due to wheel wear and other factors that affect the vertical position of the moveable plows 16. Wheel wear is a function of, among other things, the rails, the operating environment, the wheel hardness and the wheel profile. As the locomotive wheels 104 wear, the plow system 10 in general and the moveable plows 16 in particular may have to be adjusted upwards.
The body 20 may be made from metal or any material capable of withstanding the high stress loads caused by impacting sand. The body 20 has a width and extends from an inner vertical edge 30 inward of the rail 50 (
Preferably each moveable plow body 20 forms a curl 28 extending substantially the entire body width at its top edge 38 to channel the flow of sand 40 outwardly. If the sand 40 starts to override the moveable plow 16, the curl 28 will guide the sand 40 outward and off to the side, away from the locomotive wheels. Preferably the curl 28 is most pronounced at the outer vertical edge 32 of the body 20 and diminishes at the inner vertical edge 30. In other words, preferably the body top edge 38 extends farthest in front of the plane of the body 20 at the outer vertical edge 32 and least in front of the plane of the body 20 at the inner vertical edge 30.
Preferably each moveable plow 16 has a relatively unobstructed plow front face 34 that efficiently moves sand laterally across the front face 34 of the moveable plow 16. For example, in one aspect only bolts 44 extend forward to the body 20.
The lip 22 may have a substantially linear lower edge 24 preferably in contact with the rail 50. The lip 22 may be made from polyurethane or any other suitable material. The lip 22 may be bolted on or otherwise affixed to the body 20 and may be replaced after excessive wear. The lip 22 is invertible, that is, it can be flipped over so that the top edge 26 is positioned facing down against the rail 50, effectively doubling the useful life of the lip 22.
Preferably the sweep angle (Ø) for each moveable plow 16 is equal to or greater than the angle of repose (α) of the sand 40. This configuration is intended to prevent the build-up of sand 40 in front of the locomotive 100. An operable sweep angle (Ø) is in the range of about 30 degrees to about 45 degrees, with a preferred sweep angle of about 37.5 degrees. Of course, the preferred sweep angle is a function of, among other things, the environmental conditions.
The moveable plow 16 needs to be kept in direct contact with the rail 50 as the lip 22 wears down and/or the wheels 104 wear down. Thus the contact portion of the moveable plow 16, that is, the lower edge of the lip 22, can be adjusted vertically in one of three ways:
First, the lip 22 may be manually height adjustable with respect to the body 20 at the points of attachment to the body 20. This may be accomplished by attaching the lip 22 to the body 20 with fasteners such as bolts 46 that extend through vertical slots (obscured in
Second, the entire moveable plow 16 may be manually height adjustable with respect to height adjusting mechanism 19 at the points of attachment to the height adjusting mechanism 19. This may be accomplished by attaching the moveable plow 16 to the height adjusting mechanism 19 with bolts 44 that extend through vertical slots 43 in the body 20. To manually adjust the height of the moveable plow 16 the bolts 44 are loosened, repositioned along the vertical slots 43 and then re-tightened. Material behind the slots 43 keeps sand from flowing through the slots 43.
Third, each moveable plow 16 may be automatically height adjustable with respect to the locomotive 100 by attaching the moveable plow 16 to a bogie 18 (
The system 10 may be set up to operate by the activation of a single switch. When activated, the system 10 determines which direction the locomotive 100 is moving and automatically adjusts the height of the moveable plows 16, typically by activating the height adjusting mechanism 19, to keep the moveable plow 16 directly on the rail 50. If multiple locomotives 100 are hooked up together and the operator activates the system 10, the system 10 can adjust the appropriate moveable plows 16, that is, the moveable plows 16 on the front of the leading locomotive 100 and the moveable plows 16 on rear of the trailing locomotive 100. In this way the train can be operated in either direction in sandy conditions.
It is understood that the embodiments of the disclosure described above includes only particular examples which serve to illustrate the principles of the disclosure. Modifications and alternative embodiments of the disclosure are contemplated which do not depart from the scope of the disclosure as defined by the foregoing teachings and appended claims. It is intended that the claims cover all such modifications and alternative embodiments that fall within their scope.
