Draft gear coupling device

Claim 1

A DRAFT GEAR COUPLING DEVICE FOR COUPLING CARS OF A RAILWAY VEHICLE AND CUSHIONING THE IMPACT OF DRAFT AND BUFF FORCES, COMPRISING: COUPLING MEANS ADAPTED TO BE SECURED TO ONE OF THE CARS FOR DETACHABLY CONNECTING SAID ONE CAR TO ANOTHER CAR, SAID COUPLING MEANS BEING RESPONSIVE TO A BUFF FORCE BETWEN SAID CARS FOR MOVEMENT IN ONE DIRECTION AND TO A DRAFT FORCE BETWEEN SAID CARS FOR MOVEMENT IN AN OPPOSITE DIRECTION; CUSHIONING MEANS HAVING A CLOSED CHAMBER OF FIXED VOLUME AND A PLUNGER EXTENDING INTO ONE END OF SAID CHAMBER AND MOVABLE RELATIVE THERETO; AN ENLARGED HEAD ON AN INNER END OF SAID PLUNGER AND MOVABLE THEREWITH IN SAID CHAMBERM SAID HEAD DEFINING AN ANNULAR ORIFICE BETWEEN THE INTERIOR SURFACE OF SAID CHAMBER AND THE PERIPHERAL EDGE OF SAID ENLARGED HEAD; A COMPRESSIBLE SOLID COMPRISING A UNITARY HOMOGENEOUS MASS UNDER PRESSURE IN SAID CHAMBER SURROUNDING SAID PLUNGER AND SAID HEAD AND FILLING SAID CHAMBER FOR EFFECTING THE DAMPING AND SPRING FORCE ON SAID HEAD IN RESPONSE TO MOVEMENT OF SAID PLUNGER INTO SAID CHAMBER SO AS TO REDUCE THE VOLUME OF THE COMPRESSIBLE SOLID IN THE CHAMBER; AND MEANS FOR TRANSLATING SAID MOVEMENT OF SAID COUPLING MEANS INTO AN AXIAL MOVEMENT OF ONE OF SAID PLUNGER AND SAID CHAMBER RELATIVE TO THE OTHER.