Patent Application
20070074639
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to railroad guide rails and, in particular, to an improved system, method, and apparatus for supporting a railroad guide rail.
2. Description of the Related Art
A guide or guard rail aligns the wheels on railroad cars to prevent damage to track components. Guide rails also force the wheels to follow a desired path where the wheels may derail. Guide rails are located in railroad tracks adjacent the high side of curves, across bridges, adjacent turnout frogs, and at elevated sections of track. At turnout frogs, guide rails divert the path of one wheel of a railroad car to cause the opposite wheel to be drawn away from the turnout frog. Otherwise, a wheel may strike the frog and cause undesired wear or damage to the frog.
Some guide rails are not adjustable and are replaced when the guide rail face has worn such that it no longer properly guides the path of the non-guarded wheels. Some guide rails are formed from track rail that is parallel to the guarded running rail. Installation of the heavy track rail was difficult and somewhat imprecise. In many instances, the guide rail assembly is mounted on the same tie plates as that of the traffic rail, thus linking the installation points of the guide rail to the tie spacing. Other guide rails are fastened to the traffic rail. Such fastening often requires drilling of the running rail, which makes installation difficult.
Still other guide rails are formed from rolled steel. The guide bars are mounted on a bracket or brace and provide a guide face parallel to the gage line of a running rail. The guard bars and the support brackets or braces are separate items, and only the guard bar is replaced when the guard face wears beyond an acceptable limit. Again, some guide rail assemblies do not have an adjustment to compensate for the wear of the guard face. However, some recent designs provide an adjustment to compensate for wear of the guard face.
Most guide rail assemblies are secured to tie plates for traffic rails or directly to the traffic rails themselves by threaded fasteners or by welding. Threaded fasteners require a high level of maintenance due to their tendency to loosen over a period of time. Those guide rail assemblies that are affixed to the running rail and require drilling of the running rail are time consuming and difficult to install and maintain. Thus, an improved guide rail support system that overcomes the problems associated with the prior art would be desirable.
One embodiment of a system, method, and apparatus for a guide rail support assembly comprises a brace and a guide rail positioned on the brace. The guide rail extends in a longitudinal direction. A hook device has a base and two or more hooks extending from the base perpendicular to the guide rail. The hooks extend around the brace and secure the guide rail to the brace. The brace has no apertures, such that the hooks extend completely around the brace without penetrating any portion of the brace. Adjustment shims are positioned adjacent the brace. A spring clip is mounted adjacent the base and the adjustment shims for securing the hook device to the brace.
The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, in view of the following detailed description of the present invention, taken in conjunction with the appended claims and the accompanying drawings.
So that the manner in which the features and advantages of the invention, as well as others which will become apparent are attained and can be understood in more detail, more particular description of the invention briefly summarized above may be had by reference to the embodiment thereof which is illustrated in the appended drawings, which drawings form a part of this specification. It is to be noted, however, that the drawings illustrate only an embodiment of the invention and therefore are not to be considered limiting of its scope as the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments.
Referring to
The illustrated guide rail support assembly 21 comprises a brace 31 that is directly mounted (e.g., welded) to plate 23. The brace 31 has a horizontal front ledge 33 and a vertical rear wall 35 that is opposite the front ledge 33. In the embodiment shown, the vertical rear wall 35 has no horizontal ledge extending therefrom, unlike prior art designs. Moreover, the brace 31 has no apertures in this embodiment. The guide bar 27 is positioned on the front ledge 33 of the brace 31 against a vertical front wall 37. The guide bar 27 has a longitudinal length “L” that defines a longitudinal direction.
The assembly 21 also includes a hook device 41 having, in one embodiment, a tubular base 43 and a plurality of hooks 45 (e.g., two) extending from the tubular base 43. The hooks 45 extend completely around the lateral sides 47 (
In one embodiment, the base 43 of the hook device 41 comprises a horizontal tubular base extending in the longitudinal direction for receiving a straight end of the spring clip 61. The hook device 41, including the horizontal tubular base 43, has a longitudinal width 67 (
In an alternate embodiment (
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The present invention has several advantages, including the ability to provide higher frictional resistance to longitudinal movement of the guide rail relative to the brace compared to conventional single-hook designs. The configuration of the tubular base of the hook device allows spring clips to be inserted in a straighter direction and with greater ease, thereby reducing the chance that the clip will jump out when first being driven in and/or finally removed. In contrast, some single hook designs can cause the clip to hit an installer on the first strike when driving the clip in, or on the last strike when driving the clip out. With the single upright or brace welded to the plate, the open area around the brace is increased. This provides clearance for hold down spike holes on both sides of the brace, whereas single hook designs with two welded uprights or braces do not provide as much clearance.
While the invention has been shown or described in only some of its forms, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible to various changes without departing from the scope of the invention.
