Type H Tightlock couplers are a variety of Janney coupler, typically used on North American mainline passenger rail cars. They have mechanical features that reduce slack in normal operation and prevent telescoping in derailments, yet remain compatible with other Janney types used by North American freight railroads. Like all Janney couplers, the Tightlock is "semi-automatic". The couplers automatically lock when cars are pushed together, but workers must go between cars to hook up the air lines for the pneumatic brakes and connect cables for

head-end power In rail transport, head-end power (HEP), also known as electric train supply (ETS), is the electrical power distribution system on a passenger train. The power source, usually a locomotive (or a generator car) at the front or 'head' of a train, ...

and other communications. To separate cars, a worker must use a lever to move the locking pin that keeps the coupler closed. In Europe, some operators experimented with making fully automatic tightlock couplers by adding integral pneumatic and electric connectors, but these connections proved unreliable, and most have switched to the more common fully automatic

Scharfenberg coupler The Scharfenberg coupler (, abbreviated ''Schaku'') is a commonly used type of fully automatic railway coupling. Designed in 1903 by Karl Scharfenberg in Königsberg, Germany (today Kaliningrad, Russia), the coupler has gradually spread from tr ...

. Janney Type H Tightlock coupler standards were established by the Association of American Railroads, which transferred the standard to the

American Public Transportation Association The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) is a nonprofit group of approximately 1,500 public and private sector member organizations that promotes and advocates for the interests of the public transportation industry in the United ...

in 1971 when passenger service was nationalized in the United States from most private railway companies to Amtrak. On a standard-gauge railway, the nominal mounting height for the coupler (rail top to coupler center) is , with a maximum height on empty cars and minimum height on loaded cars.

AAR Type F

AAR Type F Vertical InterLock couplers, often mistaken for the Type H Tightlock, are another variety, typical on North American gondola wagons that go through rotary dumpers. File:AAR Type F coupler a.jpg, Type F Interlock couplers File:AAR Type F coupler b.jpg, Type F Interlock couplers

Tightlock use in the United Kingdom

Type H couplers are in widespread use on

multiple unit A multiple-unit train (or multiple unit (MU)) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more Coach (rail), carriages joined, and where one or more of the carriages have the means of propulsion built in. By contrast, a locomotive-hauled ...

passenger trains in the UK built from the mid 1970s onwards. The previous generation of slam door units fitted with Buckeye/Henricot couplers had required a shunter to get down onto the track and stand between the two units to manually trip the coupler mechanism as well as connect or disconnect the air pipes and electrical jumper leads. In order to reduce staffing costs and cut down station dwell times,

British Rail British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. Originally a trading brand of the Railway Executive of the British Transport Comm ...

looked to incorporate an automatic coupler mechanism in its new power-door trains. Class 313 units were the first stock to incorporate this. Air-operated Tightlock couplers were chosen, together with underslung electrical connector boxes controlled by a Drum switch, and this allowed drivers to single-handedly attach or split a train without having to leave the cab. Classes of train equipped included: * Class 313 * Class 314 * Class 315 * Class 317 * Class 318 * Class 319 * Class 320 * Class 321 * Class 322 * Class 323 * Class 365 * Class 357 * Class 465 * Class 466 * Class 507 * Class 508 Tightlock was generally a success in the UK, but there were reliability issues and some notable incidents occurred where trains divided in service. The constant couple-uncouple cycles of heavy London commuter services caused the couplers' mechanisms to wear out faster than expected.

Connex South Eastern Connex South Eastern was a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Veolia Transport, Connex that operated the South Eastern franchise from October 1996 until November 2003. History On 13 October 1996 Veolia Transport, Connex comm ...

's Networker fleet was particularly susceptible to this and the company blamed its drivers in the media,Connex blames its drivers as trains come apart
''

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

'' 16 August 1999 then changed its coupling instructions to drivers to include a "push-on, pull off" power test and visual inspection to ensure that the knuckles had engaged fully. By the early 2000s the first batch of Bombardier Electrostar Class 375s had been built with Tightlock couplers for Connex South Central and

, but it was quickly decided that Dellner couplings would be preferable. All subsequent units were built with these, and their earlier examples were eventually modified. All multiple-unit trains built for the UK since then have been equipped with Dellner couplings.

References

External links

TypeH TightLock Coupler Developed And First Used 1928 In North America On New York Central RR

TypeH TightLock Coupler Made AAR APT Standard In 1947 For Passenger Stock

''Trains Magazine'' Article

Coupler Adapter
Janney To SA3 coupler Couplers {{US-train-stub

AAR Type F

Tightlock use in the United Kingdom

See also

References

External links