US1993618A - Rail bond - Google Patents

Description

March 5, 1935. F. H. NEFF 1,993,618

RAIL BOND I Filed Jan. 30, 1951 flan/E jfji eff A TTORNEY5.

INVENTOR. Y

Patented Mar; 5, 1935 UNITED STATES RAIL noun Frank H. Neff, South 'Euclid, Ohio, assignor to The Electric Railway Improvement Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application January 30, 1931, Serial No. 512,280

6 Claims (Cl. 173-278) This; invention relating as indicated to rail bonds, has specific reference to a form of rail bond construction particularly designed to be secured to the base of well known forms or" rails by first preliminarily mechanically supporting such bond on the rail and then permanently attaching the same thereto by depositing metal in a molten state on such rail base in contact with the terminals of such bond which will suitably unite such rail base and the bond terminals. This invention relates more specifically to a form. of rail bond construction employing in association with the terminals thereof, hook means for thus preliminarily mechanically supporting the bond on the rail preparatory to depositingthe vide a form of rail bond construction which shall have numerous advantages incidental to its construction and use which are not found in any bonds as heretofore made, such,'for example, as a reduction in the number of parts required in the bond terminal, facility in assembling such parts in the manufacture of the bond, and finally ease in application to the rail. invention will appear as the description proceeds. To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, said invention, then, consists of the means hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

The annexed drawing and the following'description setforth in detail certainmechanism embodying the invention, such disclosed means constituting, however, but one of various mechanical forms in which the principle of the invention may be used.

In said annexed drawing:

Fig. l is a fragmentary side elevational view of abutting rail sections showing the bond com-.

prising my invention mounted thereon; Fig. 2 is an end View partially in section of the rail illustrated in Fig. 1 showing the bond comprising my invention preliminarily attached thereto; Fig. 3 is an elevational view of the bond illustrated in the previous figures; and Fig. dis a perspective view of the hook means associated with the bond disclosed in the previous figures.

Referring more specifically to the drawing and more especially to Fig. l, the bond comprising my invention is designed to be employed as a means for electrically connecting longitudinally adjacent rails 1 and 2, which will be mechanically united and supported by means of plates such asv 3 and bolts such as 4. It will be noted that the Other objects of my rails and their associated securing and supporting. means form no part of this invention which relates specifically to the construction of the bonds for electrically connecting such rails.

The bond comprising my invention consists of a flexible stranded body portion 5 which has sheathed terminal portions 6 and 7 provided with v rebent portions 8 and 9 which portions are positioned adjacent to the edge of the rail base 10 in a manner such that the two edges, rail base and edge of terminal, form a wide seam which is run with welding metal to unite terminal to rail.

My invention relates specifically to the pro' vision of hoo-k means such as is most clearly illustrated in Fig. 4, which hook means consists of a, rebent body portion 11 provided withterminals l2 and 13 adapted tolbe respectively secured'b-y' welding, or the like, as most clearly illustrated in;Fig. 3, to the sheathedterminals 9 and 8 of the rail bond. With the hook member so secured to the'terminals of the bond, such bond may be preliminarily mechanically supported on. the base 10 of the rail, as most clearly illustrated'in Fig. 2. After the bond has been thus preliminarily secured to the base of the rail, suitable molten'metal will be deposited intermediately of the rebent terminals 8 and-9 of the bond and the base 10 of the rail, so that such terminals will be rigidly and permanently securedto such rail base.

It will be noted that the form of bond construction resulting from the employment of the hook means joining and interconnecting the terminals 8 and '9 of the bond results in the maintenance of the terminals thereof in proper relative position before assembly, so that the preliminary installation of the bond preparatory to the depositing of the molten metal to permanently secure the same is considerably facilitated.

A further advantage resulting from the employment of the hook means interconnecting the terminals of the bond resides in the increased conductivity provided by such bond without a sacrificeof any of the resilience thereof which enables the' rail ends 1 and 2 to move relatively to each other without destroying the electrical connection therebetween.

The provision of the means for preliminarily mechanically securing the terminals of the rail bond to the base of the rail at only one end of such terminals, considerably reduces the interference of such securing means with the operation of sub. sequently depositing the molten metal to perma nently attach the bond to the rails. The provision of the hook means adjacent only one side of each of the terminals eliminates any enclosed areas which heretofore have considerably interfered with the uniform depositing of the molten metal for securing the bond to the rail. Furthermore the open end of the terminals opposite the areas with which the hook means is associated enables the molten metal to be deposited much more expeditiously than has been possible with any constructions heretofore employed.

The above, described form of construction has further advantages such as the reduced cost of manufacture, the increased efficiency of the op-' eration of the preliminary securing means, and the superior construction of the resulting bond and rail connection which are believed to be sufliciently apparent from the preceding description so that a more detailed enumeration thereof is unnecessary.

Other modes of applying the principle of my invention may be employed instead of the one explained, change being made as regards the details herein disclosed, provided the means stated by any of the following claims or the equivalent of such stated means be employed. 1

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention:

1. As a new article of manufacture, a rail bond having a body portion and terminals on the ends of said body portion for attachment to a rail or like object, said bond having a combined conductor and hook means mechanically and electrically connecting between said terminals for preliminarily supporting said bond on such rail and constituting a permanently integral part of the bond.

2. As a new article of manufacture, a rail bond having a flexible body portion and terminals on the ends of said body portion for attachment to a rail or like object, and an integrally connected member bridging between said terminals to mechanically grip the rail base for preliminarily supporting said bond on such rail.

3. As a new article of manufacture, a rail bond having a flexible body portion and terminals on the ends of said body portion for attachment to a rail or like object and a hook member for gripping suoh rail for preliminarily supporting said bond, said hook member having two ends each being permanently integrally connected to a respective terminal.

4. As a new article of manufacture, a rail bond having a flexible body portion, and terminals on the ends of said body portion for attachment to a rail, said bond having a combined conductor and hook means between said terminals rebent to hold on the base of said rail for preliminarily supporting said bond thereon.

5. As a new article of manufacture, a rail bond having a body portion, and terminals on the ends of said body portion for attachment to a rail, said bond having a combined conductor and hook means mechanically and electrically connecting between said terminals for preliminarily supporting said bond on such rail and constituting a permanently integral part of the bond, said means being longitudinally yieldable with movement of the ends of the rail.

6. As a new article of manufacture, a rail bond having a flexible body portion, rebent sheathed terminals on said body arranged to cooperate with r the base of the rail to which said bond is to be secured to form a securing metal retaining means, and a hook member connecting and secured to adjacent faces of the rebent portions of the terminals and having a rebent U-shaped body to grip over the edge of a rail base for preliminarily sup-- porting said bond on such rail.

FRANK H. NEF'F.

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