Railway system

Claim 2

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam along one side of the beam, said track comprising a lower rail extending longitudinally of the beam adjacent the bottom of said side of the beam and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam adjacent the top of said side of the beam, each rail having a head, said side of the beam being inclined downwardly and outwardly from top to bottom of the beam, the lower rail projecting upwardly and outwardly from said inclined side of the beam adjacent its bottom and the upper rail projecting outwardly from said inclined side of the beam adjacent its top with the heads of the rails displaced laterally as well as vertically and lying in an inclined plane spaced outwardly from and lying above said inclined side of the beam with subsTantially all of the beam lying below said inclined plane of the rail heads, a car adapted to travel on the track alongside the beam, means at the side of the car toward the beam for supporting and guiding the car on the head of the lower rail, and means extending from the car above said inclined plane of the rail heads interconnecting the car and the head of the upper rail for holding the car against overturning, substantially all of the car being above said inclined plane of the rail heads.

Claim 3

A railway system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the car supporting and guiding means comprises inclined wheels that engage the head of the lower rail, one wheel ahead of the center of the car and one wheel behind the center of the car, said lower rail and wheels being in a plane inclined to the vertical oppositely from the inclined plane of the rail heads.

Claim 4

A railway system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the beam is of triangular form in cross section, having a base and inclined sides converging to an apex, the first track being on one of said sides, the beam having a second track on its other side comprising lower and upper rails symmetrically opposite the lower and upper rails of the first track, the heads of the lower and upper rails of the second track lying in a second plane inclined oppositely to the inclined plane of the rail heads or the first track with substantially all of the beam lying below said second plane, the two upper rails projecting outwardly in opposite directions adjacent said apex.

Claim 5

A railway system as set forth in claim 3 having second and third beams meeting at a junction with the first beam and each corresponding to the first beam, the tracks of all the beams being generally at the same angle of inclination, first means for switching cars between the first track of the first beam and the first track of the second beam or the first track of the third beam, and second means for switching cars between the second track of the first beam and the second track of the second beam or the second track of the third beam.

Claim 6

A railway system as set forth in claim 3 wherein the lower rails are structural elements of the beam and constitute lower chords situated at lower corners of the beam and the upper rails are structural elements of the beam and constitute an upper chord for the beam at the apex.

Claim 7

A railway system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the center of gravity of the car is so situated relative to the head of the upper rail as to cause the car to tend to rotate away from the beam under all normal conditions, the car being held against overturning by means of a traveling tension-transferring interconnection with the head of the upper rail, the weight of the car having a vector generally in the plane of the lower rail and a tension vector in said interconnection, said vectors forming a triangle with said inclined plane of the rail heads.

Claim 8

A railway system as set forth in claim 6 wherein the tension-transferring interconnection comprises at least one roller which engages an inward-facing surface on the head of the upper rail.

Claim 9

A railway system as set forth in claim 7 wherein there are a plurality of rollers, some above and some below the web of the upper rail.

Claim 10

A railway system as set forth in claim 8 wherein the several rollers are mounted on a common carriage, which carriage partially encircles the head of the upper rail.

Claim 11

A railway system as set forth in claim 9 wherein there is also mounted on the carriage a device to collect electrical power from a third rail mounted in proximity to the head of the upper rail.

Claim 12

A railway system as set forth in claim 10 wherein the third rail is mounted on the bottom of the web of the upper rail, and is connected to an electrical power bus at periodic intervals along the track.

Claim 13

A railway system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the tension-transferring interconnection comprises means enabling transition of the upper and lower rails to difFerent relative displacements while retaining the car erect.

Claim 14

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, wherein the beam has a second track comprising third and fourth rails symmetrically opposite the first and second rails, the heads of the third and fourth rails lying in a second plane inclined oppositely to the first plane with substantially all of the beam below said second plane, wherein the lower rails are structural elements of the beam and constitute lower chords situated at lower corners of the beam and the upper rails are structural elements of the beam and constitute an upper chord for the beam, and wherein the beam has three shear-carrying webs in isosceles triangle arrangement, each web connecting two of the chords.

Claim 15

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, wherein the beam has a second track comprising third and fourth rails symmetrically opposite the first and second rails, the heads of the third and fourth rails lying in a second plane inclined oppositely to the first plane with substantially all of the beam below said second plane, wherein the lower rails are structural elements of the beam and constitute lower chords situated at lower corners of the beam and the upper rails are structural elements of the beam and constitute an upper chord for the beam, and wherein the beam has three shear-carrying webs in isosceles triangle arrangement, each web connecting two of the chords.

Claim 16

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, having a car adapted to travel on the track, means for supporting and guiding the car on the head of the lower rail, and means interconnecting the car and the head of the upper rail for holding the car against overturning, substantially all of the car being above said plane, wherein the car supporting and guiding means comprises inclined wheels that engage the head of the lower rail, one wheel ahead of the center of the car and one wheel behind the center of the car, and having hooks along side each wheel, said hooks extending generally downward parallel to the plane of the wheel and inclined toward each other, partially encircling the head of the lower rail.

Claim 17

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, having a car adapted to travel on the track, means for supporting and guiding the car on the head of the lower rail, and means interconnecting the car and the head of the upper rail for holding the car against overturning, substantially all of the car being above said plane, wherein the car supporting and guiding means comprises inclined wheels that engage the head of the lower rail, one wheel ahead of the center of the car and one wheel behind the center of the car, and having hooks along side each wheel, said hooks extending generally downward parallel to the plane of the wheel and inclined toward each other, partially encircling the head of the lower rail.

Claim 18

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, having a car adapted to travel on the track, means for supporting and guiding the car on the head of the lower rail, and means interconnecting the car and the head of the upper rail for holding the car against overturning, substantially all of the car being above said plane, wherein the center of gravity of the car is so situated relative to the head of the upper rail as to cause the car to tend to rotate away from the beam under all normal conditions, the car being held against overturning by means of a traveling tension-transferring interconnection with the head of the upper rail, and wherein there is one tension-transferring interconnection ahead of the center of the car and one such interconnection behind the center of the car, with each interconnection being capable of extension and retraction, and means adapted to cause one to extend as the other retracts.

Claim 19

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, having a car adapted to travel on the track, means for supporting and guiding the car on the head of the lower rail, and means interconnecting the car and the head of the upper rail for holding the car against overturning, substantially all of the car being above said plane, wherein the center of gravity of the car is so situated relative to the head of the upper rail as to cause the car to tend to rotate away from the beam under all normal conditions, the car being held against overturning by means of a traveling tension-transferring interconnection with the head of the upper rail, and wherein there is one tension-transferring interconnection ahead of the center of the car and one such interconnection behind the center of the car, with each interconnection being capable of extension and retraction, and means adapted to cause one to extend as the other retracts.

Claim 20

A railway system as set forth in claim 15 wherein the said means comprises a hydraulic cylinder in each interconnection, and a hydraulic connection between the two hydraulic cylinders.

Claim 21

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, having a car adapted to travel on the track, means for supporting and guiding the car on the head of the lower rail, and means interconnecting the car and the head of the uPper rail for holding the car against overturning, substantially all of the car being above said plane, wherein the center of gravity of the car is situated relative to the head of the upper rail as to cause the car to tend to rotate away from the beam under all normal conditions, the car being held against overturning by means of a traveling tension-transferring interconnection with the head of the upper rail, and wherein the said interconnection is mounted to move up and down relative to the car, adapting it to various heights of the head of the upper rail relative to the head of the lower rail.

Claim 22

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, having a car adapted to travel on the track, means for supporting and guiding the car on the head of the lower rail, and means interconnecting the car and the head of the uPper rail for holding the car against overturning, substantially all of the car being above said plane, wherein the center of gravity of the car is situated relative to the head of the upper rail as to cause the car to tend to rotate away from the beam under all normal conditions, the car being held against overturning by means of a traveling tension-transferring interconnection with the head of the upper rail, and wherein the said interconnection is mounted to move up and down relative to the car, adapting it to various heights of the head of the upper rail relative to the head of the lower rail.

Claim 23

A railway system as set forth in claim 17 wherein the up-and-down motion is generally rotational about an axis adjacent the intersection between the plane of the car''s wheels and a vertical longitudinal plane including the center of gravity of the car.

Claim 24

railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, wherein the beam has a second track comprising third and fourth rails symmetrically opposite the first and second rails, the heads of the third and fourth rails lying in a second plane inclined oppositely to the first plane with substantially all of the beam below said second plane, having second and third beams meeting at a junction with the first beam and each corresponding to the first beam, the tracks of all the beams being generally at the same angle of inclination, first means for switching cars between the first track of the first beam and the first track of the second beam or the first track of the third beam, and second means for switching cars between the second track of the first beam and the second track of the second beam or the second track of the third beam, wherein each switching means has two tracks and wherein the four tracks of the switching means, in transverse cross-section, are disposed two on one side and two on the other of triangles of progressively increasing size.

Claim 25

railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, wherein the beam has a second track comprising third and fourth rails symmetrically opposite the first and second rails, the heads of the third and fourth rails lying in a second plane inclined oppositely to the first plane with substantially all of the beam below said second plane, having second and third beams meeting at a junction with the first beam and each corresponding to the first beam, the tracks of all the beams being generally at the same angle of inclination, first means for switching cars between the first track of the first beam and the first track of the second beam or the first track of the third beam, and second means for switching cars between the second track of the first beam and the second track of the second beam or the second track of the third beam, wherein each switching means has two tracks and wherein the four tracks of the switching means, in transverse cross-section, are disposed two on one side and two on the other of triangles of progressively increasing size.

Claim 26

A railway comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, wherein the beam has a second track comprising a third and fourth rails symmetrically opposite the first and second rails, the heads of the third and fourth rails lying in a second plane inclined oppositely to the first plane with substantially all of the beam below said second plane, having second and third beams meeting at a junction with the first beam and each corresponding to the first beam, the tracks of all the beams being generally at the same angle of inclination, first means for switching cars between the first track of the first beam and the first track of the second beam or the first track of the third beam, and second means for switching cars between the second track of the first beam and the second track of the second beam or the second track of the third beam, and wherein a third rail for power distribution is mounted beneath the upper rail of each of the four tracks throughout the switching area.

Claim 27

A railway comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, wherein the beam has a second track comprising a third and fourth rails symmetrically opposite the first and second rails, the heads of the third and fourth rails lying in a second plane inclined oppositely to the first plane with substantially all of the beam below said second plane, having second and third beams meeting at a junction with the first beam and each corresponding to the first beam, the tracks of all the beams being generally at the same angle of inclination, first means for switching cars between the first track of the first beam and the first track of the second beam or the first track of the third beam, and second means for switching cars between the second track of the first beam and the second track of the second beam or the second track of the third beam, and wherein a third rail for power distribution is mounted beneath the upper rail of each of the four tracks throughout the switching area.

Claim 28

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, wherein the beam is elevated above a floor of a station, and wherein a car has an elevator adapted, when the car is stopped at the station, to descend to said floor for ingress and egress of passengers, and having guard means at said station for keeping people out from under the descending elevator, said guard means extending upwardly from said floor to a height sufficient to exclude people from the area under a descending elevator, and being movable downwardly by the elevator as it descends.

Claim 29

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, wherein the beam is elevated above a floor of a station, and wherein a car has an elevator adapted, when the car is stopped at the station, to descend to said floor for ingress and egress of passengers, and having guard means at said station for keeping people out from under the descending elevator, said guard means extending upwardly from said floor to a height sufficient to exclude people from the area under a descending elevator, and being movable downwardly by the elevator as it descends.

Claim 30

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, having expansion joints in gaps between the ends of successive rails, each rail having a base, a web and a head, each expansion joint occupying the gap between the ends of two rails and comprising an end extension for one of the two rails and an end extension for the other, each extension being secured at one end to the end of the respective rail and extending across the gap toward the end of the other rail, each extension having a web with an inside face in sliding engagement with the inside face of the web of the other extension, with the webs of said extensions generally aligned with and extending between the ends of the webs of the two rails, the webs of said extensions having slidably interengaged longitudinal interconnections at their said inside faces for transmission of loads perpendicularly to the length of the webs of the extensions in the plane of the latter, each extension further having a head on its web in extension of the head of the respective rail, the head of each extension extending from adjacent the end of the respective rail toward but terminating short of the end of the other rail, and the heads of the extensions having opposed angled ends at an expansion gap therefor.

Claim 31

A railway system comprising a beam, a track extending longitudinally of the beam, said track comprising a lower and an upper rail extending longitudinally of the beam, each rail having a head, the heads of the rails lying in a plane inclined to the longitudinal vertical plane of the beam with substantially all of the beam below said inclined plane, having expansion joints in gaps between the ends of successive rails, each rail having a base, a web and a head, each expansion joint occupying the gap between the ends of two rails and comprising an end extension for one of the two rails and an end extension for the other, each extension being secured at one end to the end of the respective rail and extending across the gap toward the end of the other rail, each extension having a web with an inside face in sliding engagement with the inside face of the web of the other extension, with the webs of said extensions generally aligned with and extending between the ends of the webs of the two rails, the webs of said extensions having slidably interengaged longitudinal interconnections at their said inside faces for transmission of loads perpendicularly to the length of the webs of the extensions in the plane of the latter, each extension further having a head on its web in extension of the head of the respective rail, the head of each extension extending from adjacent the end of the respective rail toward but terminating short of the end of the other rail, and the heads of the extensions having opposed angled ends at an expansion gap therefor.

Claim 32

In a railway system, a common track and first and second branch tracks, a car adapted to travel on the tracks, and switch means for switching the car for travel either on the common and first branch tracks or the common and second branch tracks, each of said tracks comprising a pair of rails, means supporting the rails of said tracks with the rails displaced both vertically and laterally relative to one another so that the heads of the rails lie in an inclined plane, said supporting means lying substantially wholly below said inclined plane, said switch means comprising a first pair of fixed switching rails associated with the first branch track, a second pair of fixed switching rails associated with the second branch track, and a pair of movable rails for switching the car between the common track and first pair of fixed switching rails and between the common track and the second pair of fixed switching rails, and means supporting the fixed and movable switching rails with these rails displaced both vertically and laterally relative to one another and lying in substantially the same inclined plane as said common and branch tracks, the movable switching rails being movable in said inclined plane, said car having means for supporting and guiding it on the lower of each of said pairs of rails, and means extending from the car above said inclined plane for interconnecting the car and the upper of each of said pairs of rails for holding the car against overturning.

Claim 33

In a railway system, a common track and first and second branch tracks, a car adapted to travel on the tracks, and switch means for switching the car for travel either on the common and first branch tracks or the common and second branch tracks, each of said tracks comprising a pair of rails, means supporting the rails of said tracks with the rails displaced both vertically and laterally relative to one another so that the heads of the rails lie in an inclined plane, said supporting means lying substantially wholly below said inclined plane, said switch means comprising a first pair of fixed switching rails associated with the first branch track, a second pair of fixed switching rails associated with the second branch track, and a pair of movable rails for switching the car between the common track and first pair of fixed switching rails and between the common track and the second pair of fixed switching rails, and means supporting the fixed and movable switching rails with these rails displaced both vertically and laterally relative to one another and lying in substantially the same inclined plane as said common and branch tracks, the movable switching rails being movable in said inclined plane, said car having means for supporting and guiding it on the lower of each of said pairs of rails, and means extending from the car above said inclined plane for interconnecting the car and the upper of each of said pairs of rails for holding the car against overturning.

Claim 34

In a railway system as set forth in claim 23, said movable switching rails being short in length relative to said fixed switching rails.

Claim 35

In a railway system as set forth in claim 23, each of said common track and said first and second tracks being on a beam, said beams meeting at a junction.