Railways – Car-carried propulsion system – Pneumatic
Reexamination Certificate
1998-07-16
2001-04-10
Morano, S. Joseph (Department: 3617)
Railways
Car-carried propulsion system
Pneumatic
C104S140000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06213026
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention generally relates to pneumatic transportation systems wherein vehicles are pneumatically propelled along a vehicle guideway by one or more vehicle propulsion plate extending into an air duct of the guideway. The invention more particularly relates to the manner of connecting a propulsion plate to a pneumatically propelled vehicle, and has particular application in respect to vehicles having horizontal stabilizing beams on the underside of the vehicle for counter-balancing torsional forces transmitted to the vehicle from the propulsion plate.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,658,732 issued to Oskar H. W. Coester (the Coester '732 patent) discloses a pneumatic transportation system wherein vehicles capable of transporting freight or passengers are propelled along an elevated vehicle guideway having an enclosed air duct beneath a trackway support platform. The vehicle is propelled by pneumatic propulsion forces acting against a propulsion plate in the guideway air duct, which in turn is connected to one of the vehicle's wheel trucks by a mast or pylon that passes through a longitudinal sealed guide slot in the guideway support platform. Also disclosed is the use of a horizontal stabilizing or traction beam connected between the pylon and the underside of the vehicle body to counteract the bending moment produced at the top of the vertical pylon by the horizontal propulsion forces on the propulsion plate attached to the bottom of the pylon. This beam reduces the tendency of the pneumatic propulsion forces to lift the vehicle truck wheels from the track, thereby increasing traction or contact between the track and the vehicle. This is especially important in transportation systems of this type, since the vehicles are relatively light as compared to vehicles having onboard motors or other onboard power sources.
While the pneumatically propelled vehicle shown in the Coester '732 patent would perform suitably along straight sections of guideway, its disclosed use of a stabilizing beam is not practical for pneumatic transportation systems having a guideway configuration employing horizontal curves. Specifically, the disclosed rigid connection between the stabilizing beam and propulsion plate of the vehicle would prevent the pylon from rotating with the wheel truck as the wheel truck enters a curve thereby preventing rotation of the wheel truck. The rigid connection between the pylon and stabilizing beam and the vehicle's wheel trucks would also cause the wheels of the wheel trucks to lose contact with the tracks of the guideway when the wheel trucks enter and exit vertical curves due to the inability of the wheel trucks to freely follow changes in gradients in the trackway.
Another difficulty with the wheel truck design shown in the Coester '732 patent relates to its conventional placement of the propulsion plate in a centered position relative to the wheel truck, that is, midway between truck wheels. This centered position results in small misalignments between the propulsion plate and air duct in horizontal curves of the guideway as well as misalignments between the vertical pylon and the support platform guide slot. These temporal misalignments require compensations in the sizing of the propulsion plate and guide slot which increase air leakage and reduce system efficiency. Furthermore, failure to keep the propulsion plate and pylon centered relative to the air duct and guide slot as the vehicle negotiates a horizontal curve increases wear on the seals of the propulsion plate and guide slot.
The present invention provides an improved propulsion plate connector system which overcomes the above-mentioned problems of propulsion plate and pylon alignment as a vehicle negotiates curved sections of the vehicle guideway of a pneumatic transportation system. The invention provides a mechanism for connecting the propulsion plate to the wheel truck of a pneumatically propelled vehicle in a manner that permits the vehicle to freely negotiate horizontal and vertical curves while maintaining contact between the truck wheels and the trackway, and while keeping the propulsion plate and its connecting pylon in a true centered position relative to the air duct and guide slot. Using the pylon connector system of the invention, a propulsion plate can be designed closer to the dimensions of the air duct (that is, with very small gaps between the edges of the propulsion plate and the walls of the guideway) resulting in reduced air flow across the propulsion plate. Maintaining a centered pylon as it passes through the guide slot will also reduce air leakage through the slot seal and slot seal wear.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Briefly, the invention involves an improved propulsion plate connector system having a vertical pylon which connects a propulsion plate in the air duct of a vehicle guideway to a wheel carriage structure of a vehicle pneumatically propelled on the guideway. One aspect of the invention also involves the use of a horizontal stabilizing beam connected between the pylon and the vehicle to counteract torque about the top of the pylon produced by propulsion forces on the propulsion plate.
In accordance with the invention, the top end of the pylon is connected to the wheel carriage of the vehicle at a pylon joint that fixes the rotational position of the pylon and the propulsion plate relative to the wheel carriage such that the propulsion plate follows the travel of the wheel carriage as the wheel rotates in a horizontal curve. Typically the wheel carriage will be in the form of a convention wheel truck having two wheel sets defining two wheel axes, however, a wheel carriage structure for a single wheel set could also be used, such as with relatively short vehicles which are also relatively light.
In one aspect of the invention, a horizontal hinge joint connects the base end of the stabilizing beam to the top end of the pylon proximate the pylon joint to permit horizontal articulation of the stabilizing beam relative to the wheel carriage so as to permit the propulsion plate connected to the pylon to follow horizontal curves in the air duct of the vehicle guideway. In another aspect of the invention, the pylon joint provides a vertical pivot joint which permits the pylon to pivot in the longitudinal vertical plane so as to permit the wheel carriage to maintain contact in vertical curves in the vehicle guideway. The pylon joint and the hinge joint for the horizontal beam preferably provide for both vertical and horizontal articulation to permit the vehicle to readily negotiate both vertical and horizontal curves.
In a further aspect of the invention, the pylon joint is located proximate the wheel axis of one of the wheel sets of the wheel carriage so as to position the propulsion plate connected to the bottom end of the pylon in approximate vertical alignment with the wheel axis. In yet another aspect of the invention both the pylon and the propulsion plate are positioned in approximate vertical alignment with the wheel axis. As hereinafter described in greater detail, such approximate alignment of the propulsion plate and the pylon with the axis of one of the wheel sets of a wheel carriage such as a two axle wheel truck, instead of centering the pylon and propulsion plate between the wheel sets, will minimize deviations from the optimum centered position of the propulsion plate and connecting pylon as the propulsion plate and pylon pass through a horizontal curve in the vehicle guideway.
In still a further aspect of the invention, the pylon joint joins the top of the pylon to a static wheel axle on a wheel carriage at a location that is proximate to and in front of the wheel axle such that the pylon joint and wheel axle are in the same approximate horizontal plane. Such positioning of the pylon joint will facilitate disassembly of the pylon and propulsion plate from the wheel axle for maintenance purposes and will reduce the longitudinal forces transmitted to the axle by propelling forces on the propulsion plate. In accordance with a
Campani Carlos Antonio
Coester Oskar Hans Wolfgang
Pinto Claudio Faraó Souza
Aeromoval Global Corporation
Beeson Donald L.
McCarry, Jr. Robert J.
Morano S. Joseph
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