Railways: surface track – Fastenings – Clamps
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-30
2001-07-10
Le, Mark T. (Department: 3617)
Railways: surface track
Fastenings
Clamps
Reexamination Certificate
active
06257495
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a device for securing railroad rails on a ballast track or a solid track in a highly resilient manner.
Two separate systems exist as devices for securing railroad rails. On the one hand, the attachments for sleepers or supports on a ballast foundation, and on the other hand the superstructure for a solid track, i.e. securing rails for a superstructure without ballast. The superstructure on a solid track is increasingly gaining in important as axle loads and journey speeds rise, whereby as regards the superstructure on a solid track it is essential to achieve a requisite track compression.
Yet ballast tracks which are fitted with the standard superstructure also frequently exhibit rail compression values that are too low for use in high-speed transport on new routes. The resilience of ballast permits track compression which results in a rail head depression of about 0.6 mm. This track compression is clearly below today's desired rail head depression of 1.5 mm.
The resilient intermediate layers used in the prior art, even the use of so-called “soft” intermediate layers with static spring rates of c=50-70 kN/mm, improve track compression only to a rail head depression of about 1.0 mm (in conjunction with the ballast track).
A device for securing railroad rails on a solid track is described in EP 0 295 685. To achieve good track compression, a resilient intermediate plate is disposed between the rail flange and the concrete railroad sleeper; this plate ensures sufficient compression. Above the resilient intermediate plate there is located a pressure distribution plate which is dimensioned such that it and the resilient intermediate plate laterally project above the flange of the rail. Angle guide plates which form a support for tension clamps to secure the rails and which press the same against the rail flange by means of a sleeper screw are arranged on both sides of the rail flange. The guide angle plates form a rail channel, absorb the horizontal forces and introduce them into the concrete sleeper via angled surfaces in contact with the sleeper. The angle guide plates have chamber-like recesses into which the pressure distribution plate (protruding on both sides across the width of the rail flange) and resilient intermediate plate can project. The concrete sleepers described in EP 0 295 685 are specifically adapted to use on a solid track, and in the securing region they have a very low recess that completely receives the angle guide plates.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is based on the object of using standard elements and standard concrete sleepers to design a rail attachment, by means of which high rail compression values can be achieved.
The device for securing railroad rails on a ballast track or a solid track includes a standard concrete sleeper used on the ballast track; two angle guide plates for a securing point of the railroad track on the standard concrete sleeper, the plates being arranged on both sides of the rail flange for lateral guidance thereof; one securing screw per angle guide plate, the screw passing though the plate and pressing a tensible clamp against the rail flange and pressing the rail flange and the angle guide plate against the standard concrete sleeper; at least one resilient intermediate plate arranged between the rail flange and the standard concrete sleeper; wherein the angle guide plates have a first and a second surface at their end facing away from the rail, the first surface being inclined at an angle to the perpendicular in the mounted position and abutting a correspondingly shaped angled surface of the standard concrete sleeper, and the second surface being essentially vertically aligned and rising over the upper side of the standard concrete sleeper.
By using angle guide plates which can be inserted almost completely into the concrete sleeper's depression, not only a resilient intermediate plate but also a pressure distribution plate and a plastic intermediate layer can be arranged between rail and concrete sleeper despite the use of standard concrete sleepers, with it being possible nevertheless to use a standard tension clamp.
By providing the angle guide plates with receiving spaces which are each open toward the rail flange in the mounted position, the resilient intermediate plate can protrude on both sides across the width of the rail flange and project into the receiving spaces of the angle guide plates arranged on both sides of the rail.
Both the resilient intermediate plate and the pressure distribution plate advantageously have a larger extension in the standard concrete sleeper's longitudinal direction than the rail flange and therefore protrude across the width of the rail flange on both sides thereof and project into the receiving spaces of the angle guide plates. As a result, the pressure distribution plate distributes over a large surface area the forces transferred by the rail flange to this plate and introduces them evenly into the standard concrete sleeper via the resilient intermediate plate. This embodiment also enjoys the advantage that when the pre-assembled securing devices are delivered on the sleeper, the resilient intermediate plate and the pressure distribution plate are undetachably arranged between the two angle guide plates which form a securing point.
The securing screws are preferably anchored in interchangeable plastic screw dowels located in the standard concrete sleepers. This makes it possible on the one hand to perform quickly any necessary maintenance work that requires the screw dowel to be exchanged, and on the other hand to allow the use of various standard tension clamps and to adapt quickly and reliably the concrete sleeper to the particular sleeper screws used for this purpose.
According to a preferred embodiment, the shape of the angle guide plates is adapted to the use of a standard tension clamp for securing the rail flange, as described e.g. in DE 39 18 091. It is therefore possible to fall back on a maximum number of standard elements and perhaps to perform conversion of existing track installations without changing the tension clamps.
Different angle guide plates which in their mounted position have a varying horizontal extension in the standard concrete sleeper's longitudinal direction can be preferably used. As a result, the position of the rail channel formed between two angle guide plates is variably designed and the gauge can be set or corrected within predetermined limits.
The rotational axes of the securing screws are preferably inclined at an angle to the perpendicular. This makes it much easier to place the rail into the rail channel formed between the angle guide plates.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3519205 (1970-07-01), Monclin et al.
patent: 4066212 (1978-01-01), Sonneville
patent: 4802623 (1989-02-01), Fasterding et al.
patent: 4907740 (1990-03-01), Oberweiler et al.
patent: 5096119 (1992-03-01), Schultheiss et al.
patent: 5125573 (1992-06-01), Vanotti
patent: 126057 (1977-06-01), None
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patent: 3918091 (1990-12-01), None
patent: 0455594 (1991-11-01), None
patent: 4034032 (1992-04-01), None
patent: 4212679 (1993-10-01), None
patent: 0632164 (1994-06-01), None
patent: 2715414 (1995-07-01), None
Le Mark T.
Sughrue Mion Zinn Macpeak & Seas, PLLC
Vossloh - Werke GmbH
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