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Lateral Motion Device
A lateral motion device is a mechanism used in some railroad locomotives which permits the axles to move sideways relative to the frame. The device facilitates cornering. Purpose Prior to the introduction of the lateral motion device, the coupled driving wheels on steam locomotives (often simply called "drivers") were held in a straight line by the locomotive's frame. The flanges of the drivers were spaced a bit closer than the rail gauge, and they could still fit between the rails when tracking through a mild curve. At some degree of curvature, though, the flanges on the center driver would begin to bind in the curve. The closer the front and rear drivers were, the smaller the radius of curve that the locomotive could negotiate. One solution was to make the center driver(s) "blind," i.e. without flanges on the tires. The other solution was to allow at least one of the axles (often the front driver) to move laterally relative to the frame, and such designs incorporated various devi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Locomotive
A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the Power (physics), motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, Motor coach (rail), motor coach, railcar or power car; the use of these self-propelled vehicles is increasingly common for passenger trains, but rare for freight (see CargoSprinter). Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, Push-pull train, push-pull operation has become common, where the train may have a locomotive (or locomotives) at the front, at the rear, or at each end. Most recently railroads have begun adopting DPU or distributed power. The front may have one or two locomotives followed by a mid-train locomotive that is controlled remotely from the lead unit. __TOC__ Etymology The word ''locomotive'' originates from the Latin language, Latin 'from a place', Ablative case, ablative of 'place', and the Medieval Latin 'causing mot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
4-14-4
The AA20 was a one-off steam locomotive constructed by the Soviet Union under the dictatorship of Joseph Stalin. Wheel arrangement The AA20 was a "4-14-4" locomotive (using the Whyte notation classification of steam locomotives by wheel arrangement). It featured four leading wheels, fourteen coupled driving wheels (seven axles) in a rigid frame, and four trailing wheels. Equivalent classifications in other notations would have been: *UIC classification: 2G2 (also known as German classification and Italian classification) *French classification: 272 *Turkish classification: 711 *Swiss classification: 7/11 * Russian classification: 2-7-2 History The sole example of this type, called the AA20-1, was built by the Soviet Union. The designation stands for Andrey Andreyev (who sponsored its construction), 20 ton axle load. While some builders had produced twelve-coupled (six driving axles) designs, no one had ever built a fourteen-coupled engine. The AA20-1 holds two records: the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minimum Railway Curve Radius
The minimum railway curve radius is the shortest allowable design radius for the centerline of railway tracks under a particular set of conditions. It has an important bearing on construction costs and operating costs and, in combination with superelevation (difference in elevation of the two rails) in the case of train tracks, determines the maximum safe speed of a curve. The minimum radius of a curve is one parameter in the design of railway vehicles as well as trams; monorails and automated guideways are also subject to a minimum radius. History The first proper railway was the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, which opened in 1830. Like the tram roads that had preceded it over a hundred years, the L&M had gentle curves and gradients. Reasons for these gentle curves include the lack of strength of the track, which might have overturned if the curves were too sharp causing derailments. The gentler the curves, the greater the visibility, thus boosting safety via increased ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Luttermöller Axle
A Luttermöller axle is an unusual steam locomotive component. Steam locomotives with several axles or Wheelset (rail transport), wheelsets connected to one another by coupling rods are not able to negotiate tight curves well. In order to assist such locomotives, the manager of the Orenstein & Koppel factory in Berlin, Dr. Luttermöller, built the axle system named after him. Overview With this system, the outermost of several sets of successive driving wheel sets are not connected by coupling rods to crankshaft journals on the outside of the wheels, but by Gear, cogwheels located in the centre of the axles. The axles are housed in the locomotive frame such that they are able to move at right angles to the axis of the rails to a certain degree, likewise the cogwheels are able to slide relative to one another. In this way curves can be negotiated with less friction being generated. Use Germany For the Hamburg Harbour railway with its tight curves, the ten-coupled steam locomotives ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cleminson's Patent
A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transport. A bogie may remain normally attached (as on many railroad cars and semi-trailers) or be quickly detachable (as the dolly in a road train or in railway bogie exchange); it may contain a suspension within it (as most rail and trucking bogies do), or be solid and in turn be suspended (as most bogies of tracked vehicles are); it may be mounted on a swivel, as traditionally on a railway carriage or locomotive, additionally jointed and sprung (as in the landing gear of an airliner), or held in place by other means (centreless bogies). In Scotland, the term is used for a child’s (usually home-made) wooden cart. While ''bogie'' is the preferred spelling and first-listed variant in various dictionaries, bogey and bogy are also used. Rai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beugniot Lever
The Beugniot lever (''Beugniot-Hebel'') is a mechanical device used on a number of locomotives to improve curve running. It was named after its inventor Édouard Beugniot. Overview Around 1860, when Beugniot was the chief engineer at the firm of André Koechlin & Cie. in Mulhouse, he developed a system whereby wheelsets are housed in pairs in the locomotive frame, with side-play, and connected by a lever. These levers are fixed to the frame in the centre and thus enable the sideways movement of the connected axles in opposite directions. In this way, instead of being fixed in the frame, the axles are able to move sideways rather like a bogie, but clearly nowhere near as much. On locomotives with a side rod drive, the axle side-play is balanced using longer coupling pins (''Kuppelzapfen'') on which the coupling rods are also able to move sideways. Operation On running round a bend, the first axle is pushed sideways by the curve of the rails and so moves the second axle parall ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Articulated Locomotives
An articulated locomotive is a steam locomotive (rarely, an electric locomotive) with one or more engine units that can move independent of the main frame. Articulation allows the operation of locomotives that would otherwise be too large to negotiate a railroad's curves, whether mainlines or special lines with extreme curvature such as logging, industrial, or mountain railways. Articulated locomotives saw service in many nations, but were very popular on narrow-gauge railways in Europe. The largest examples were developed in the United States, where the Union Pacific Big Boy 4-8-8-4s and the Allegheny H-8 2-6-6-6s were some of the largest steam locomotives ever built. Many schemes for articulation were developed over the years. Of these, the Mallet locomotive and its simple-expansion derivative were the most popular, followed by the Garratt type (mostly built in the United Kingdom, popular throughout Europe, Africa and European colonies), and the various geared steam locomo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Adams Axle
The Adams axle is a form of radial axle for rail locomotives that enable them to negotiate curves more easily. It was invented by William Bridges Adams and patented in 1865. The invention uses axle boxes that slide on an arc in shaped horn blocks, so allowing the axle to slide out to either side. This is similar to the movement of a Bissell truck, but with the notional centre point of the curve being where the pivot of the truck would be. This design, using slide bearings, is more expensive than one employing a shaft, but takes up less space. Trials In 1865 the Society of Engineers, London, made direct comparison between the radial axle, invented by William Bridges Adams, and a bogie design with an india-rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ... central bearing in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
GS-4
The Southern Pacific GS-4 is a class of streamlined 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive operated by the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) from 1941 to 1958. A total of twenty-eight were built by the Lima Locomotive Works, numbered 4430 through 4457. GS stands for "Golden State" or "General Service." History Unlike the GS-3, the GS-4 had a dual-headlight casing (the top headlight was a mars light) on the silver smokebox. Another change was the all-weather cab. It retained the skyline casing atop the boiler, skirting on the sides, an air horn to supplement the whistle, and teardrop classification lights. They carried the orange and red "Daylight" paint scheme. The GS-4s were passenger engines capable of , though timetable speed limit never exceeded (the maximum speed allowed in the Salinas Valley). Southern Pacific's premier passenger trains were pulled by GS-4s: the ''Coast Daylight'', ''San Joaquin Daylight'', ''Lark'', ''Cascade'', '' Golden State'', and the ''Sunset Limite ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Degree Of Curvature
Degree of curve or degree of curvature is a measure of curvature of a circular arc used in civil engineering for its easy use in layout surveying. Definition The degree of curvature is defined as the central angle to the ends of an agreed length of either an arc or a chord; various lengths are commonly used in different areas of practice. This angle is also the change in forward direction as that portion of the curve is traveled. In an ''n''-degree curve, the forward bearing changes by ''n'' degrees over the standard length of arc or chord. Usage Curvature is usually measured in radius of curvature. A small circle can be easily laid out by just using radius of curvature, but degree of curvature is more convenient for calculating and laying out the curve if the radius is large as a kilometer or a mile, as it needed for large scale works like roads and railroads. By using degrees of curvature, curve setting can be easily done with the help of a transit or theodolite and a chai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giuseppe Zara
Giuseppe Zara (Fermo, 1856 – Sanremo, 1915) was an Italian inventor. He was a member of the Società Italiana per le Strade Ferrate Meridionali, and the director of Ferrovie dello Stato from 1905. He graduated at the Technical Institute of Fermo in 1875, and started working as a repairing operator in Rimini, he was later sent to Florence where he worked as a designer. In the emergency of having faster and cheaper trains, he invented a simple bissel truck system to replace Mogul 130 in steam locomotives ( « ''Carrello Italiano'' ») which was used from 1907 to 1930 not only in Italian train companies, but also in others like the Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans in France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac .... References Sources * ''Giuseppe Zara'', ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zara Bogie
A Krauss-Helmholtz bogie (''Krauss-Helmholtz-Lenkgestell'') is a mechanism used on steam locomotives and some electric locomotives to improve curve running. Operation The bogie comprises a carrying axle connected to a coupled axle via a shaft or lever. In straight running, any radial movement of the carrying axle results in a sideways movement of the coupled axle in the opposite direction. However, the carrying axle is centred by means of two heavy duty springs just behind it. In addition the pivot pin may be allowed to move sideways, but again is held centrally by heavy springs. When travelling round a curve, the carrying axle swings to one side causing the coupled axle to move sideways in the opposite direction. In this way radial forces during curve running are more or less evened out on both axles, so that riding qualities similar to those of a normal bogie are achieved and wear and tear reduced on wheel flanges and rails. The bogie is a type of pony truck and was name ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
