Abstract: A calorimetry systems for the continuous measurement of the heating value of coal, which provides heating value data used to control coal-fired furnaces. The system has apparatus for pulverizing the coal, a gravimetric feeder for providing pulverized coal at a measured mass feed rate, an initiating self-sustained combustion of the coal therein without the need for further supporting fuel gases. Instrumentation measures the flow rates of the cooling air, primary and secondary combustion air as well as the mass flow rates of the coal into the combustor. A computer is provided which is responsive to the measuring instruments (thermocouples and pressure gauges) for controlling the feeding of the coal and fuel gases during initiation of combustion and for computing the heating value of the coal. The computer has a memory with storage for specific heat values of the constituents of the products of combustion of various ranks of coal (bituminous, subbituminous, lignite, etc.

Abstract: A digital signal space division switching system in which signal blocking to new connections is avoided by rearranging existing connections. The rearrangement is accomplished without disturbing existing traffic and without requiring alternate paths to temporarily support existing traffic on rearranged signal paths. Multiple rearrangements are executed simultaneously.

Abstract: A cable guard for use with conduit bodies to faciliate low friction and low abrasion, threading or pulling of cable through cable openings in the body. The cable guard consists of a tubular clip having a longitudinal or elongated slot extending its entire length and adapted to fit in gripping and removeable engagement with the rim or lip portion of the conduit body access opening. The clip also has a pair of notches positioned at opposite ends and opposite the longitudinal slot to facilitate installation of the clip at the narrow end of an elongated conduit body access opening and to prevent the clip from rolling when in use. The clip has still another pair of notches positioned intermediate its ends and on opposite sides of the longitudinal slot to facilitate removal of the clip from the conduit body.

Abstract: A fluid brake system has a brake pipe, a control valve device, a brake cylinder and a brake rigging, and in addition, a handbrake pipe, a protective device, a fluid pressure releaseable spring handbrake cylinder, and a manually operable handbrake device for selectively governing brakes of the brake rigging under varying conditions, as when air supply is disconnected from a train. A moveable fulcrum in the manual handbrake device permits manual release of spring applied handbrakes in combination with a resetable toggle locking connection to a handbrake rod.

Abstract: A long-life motor brush holder which significantly minimizes contact of the coil portions of a ribbon spring with the holder and consequently reduces friction drag; the arrangement is such that at least two cylindrical surfaces forming part of the brush holder serve as line contact supports for each of the respective coil portions of the ribbon spring so as to produce minimal contact, the spring including a middle portion for residually engaging the brush to urge it against the motor commutator.

Abstract: A fluid brake control system for a railway train has control valves of the ABD type that have service valves that are modified to provide continuous quick service, thus eliminating the need for special accelerated application valves as currently used in ABDW control valves.

Abstract: A signal conditioning circuit including power terminals adapted to be connected to a direct current power source, sensor terminals adapted to receive a direct current signal from at least one electrical sensing device and output terminals adapted to be connected to an electrical resistance. The conditioning circuit includes an inverter connected to the power terminals for generating an output signal of opposite polarity to the signal received at the power terminals. An adjustment mechanism is connected to the output terminals for receiving the inverter output signal and adjusting the magnitude of the signal received at the sensor terminals to a desired level. In a second mode of operation, the circuit includes a second set of sensor terminals and the adjustment mechanism operates to deliver an output signal proportional to the difference between the signals received at both the first and second sensor terminals.

Abstract: Container securing device that permits containers of any length to be carried by an integral or intermodal train including the feature of a container spanning the connection of two adjacent cores. The device is implemented in a two-part structure of an upper and a lower member. The lower member is adapted for fastening at any point along the car deck. The upper member has a pair of spaced corner members for receiving two corners of a container. An interconnecting means is arranged to connect the upper and lower members so that the upper member swivels with respect to the lower member and the car deck when the train rounds a curb and further provides for a longitudinal force dampening effect.

Abstract: A circuit for measuring the conductivity of a solution by applying a known ac current source across a pair of electrodes in the solution and utilizing an analog-to-digital dual slope converter, such as those of the integrated circuit type which include capacitor sampling of the signal input, for conversion of the ac voltage drop across the electrodes. The circuit includes means for synchronizing the ac current to the clock to time the sampling so that the same polarity of signal input is always obtained. Where the known ac current source consists of switching the sense of the electrode connections to a combination of a dc source in series with a known resistor, used for supplying the reference input to the converter, a dc signal input, instead of ac, obtained by including the voltage drop of the switch with the drop across the electrodes in the signal sampled. With this arrangement, higher cell constants can be used to minimize the effect of the voltage drop across the switch.

Abstract: The square root insertion circuit of this invention has an operational amplifier circuit with a multiplying circuit of the voltage-time product type in its negative feedback path. The multiplying circuit is connected so that the time factor is proportional to the amplifier output signal and the voltage factor is also proportional to the amplifier output signal. Thus, the multiplying circuit acts as a squaring circuit to cause the output signal of the amplifier to be directly related to the square root of its input signal.

Abstract: A relay valve is provided within a single housing and includes a brake cylinder relay valve with combined highway override, a dual pressure brake cylinder limiting valve responsive to load, highway supply line and rail supply line charge check valves and a rail reservoir protection valve. The brake cylinder relay valve includes a valve spool positioned by a first piston responsive to the control signal from a control valve to determine the flow to the brake cylinder and a second piston responsive to the highway supply line to connect the brake cylinder to exhaust. The limiting valve includes a first piston responsive to load signals to define the first set of limits and a second piston in tandem with the first piston responsive to load signals and emergency brake signal in the brake pipe for increasing the response of the first piston to the load signals in response to an emergency signal on the brake pipe.

Abstract: Passenger rail vehicle brake control valve apparatus includes, a control valve device of the type limited to direct release of the brakes, having service, emergency, and continuous quick service portions secured to a pipe bracket, and a graduated release valve portion governed jointly by brake cylinder pressure, brake cylinder exhaust passage pressure from the control valve device, and brake pipe pressure to at times modify output of the control valve device to provide for graduated control of the passenger rail vehicle brakes.

Abstract: A housing has a triple valve coaxially adjoining a proportioning piston valve end-to-end, the triple valve having supply, lap and exhaust positions for governing pressure in a brake cylinder; and the proportioning piston valve being operable to sense an emergency signal in a brake pipe for delivering fluid from an emergency reservoir to the brake cylinder after the brake cylinder has been charged to substantially service pressure from an auxiliary reservoir. The triple valve and the proportioning valve piston are biased in opposite directions by the same biasing spring.

Abstract: A parallel beam brake apparatus for dual and triple axle trucks and a single beam brake apparatus for single axle trucks each comprise spaced, pivotably mounted bell crank levers which engage a fluid operable actuator between one pair of arms and engage a pair of push rods with the remaining arms. Improved spherical joints between the arms and the push rods facilitate force tranmsmission without allowing push rod rotation. A unique pivot geometry between the bell crank levers and the brake beams facilitates assembly and improves stress distribution between the levers and the beams. The actuator includes a slack adjustor mechanism in which a spiral power spring unwinds to drive a lead screw and take up slack or is wound by the rotating, translating lead screw to add slack.

Abstract: There is provided an expendable device for use with a standard immersion sensor for a molten metal bath to simultaneously hold a standard immersion sampler in juxtaposition to the sensor when the sensor is in its protective sleeve at the end of a lance ready for immersion into the bath. This device provides another expendable heat insulating protective sleeve for accepting in its end the sampler with means being provided for maintaining a side by side relationship between the sampler sleeve and the sensor sleeve during immersion. This combination may advantageously have a vent pipe extending between the sleeves to allow air displaced from the sampler by influx of the sample to vent to a region above the molten metal bath by way of a passage in the sensor sleeve.

Abstract: A three color aspect light signalling system that displays one color at a time without producing phantom signals. The apparatus utilizes three sources of collimated white light, a filter and two dichroic mirror/filters are used to produce three colored aspects and two output lenses are used to collimate the colored output signal so that it may be seen at distances greater than one mile.

Abstract: A fluid brake system has a brake pipe, a control valve device, a brake cylinder and a brake rigging, and in addition, a handbrake pipe, a protective device, a fluid pressure releasable spring handbrake cylinder, and a manually operable handbrake device for selectively governing brakes of the brake rigging under varying conditions, as when air supply is disconnected from a train. A moveable fulcrum in the manual handbrake device permits manual release of spring applied handbrakes in combination with a resetable toggle locking connection to a handbrake rod.

Abstract: A moveable contact plunger assembly for interconnection of electrical wires between adjacent railway cars. The assembly has a plunger with a shoulder which fits in abutment with a mating shoulder in an aperture of a dielectric connector block. A follower element is arranged for electrical contact with the plunger. A spring is arranged to allow axial deflection of the plunger relative to the follower element and of the follower element relative to the dielectric block shoulder. Electrical continuity between the plunger and the follower element is obtained by means of a wire which is crimped to the follower and to the plunger. A guide pin mounted on the follower element and a guide slot on a spring barrel portion of the plunger coact with the spring so as to allow axial travel of the follower and of the plunger as well as a rotating motion of the plunger during its axial travel.

Abstract: Continuous verification of vital (fail-safe) outputs from an information processing system is obtained without the need for large computing capacity (overhead). Multibit test sequences are provided continuously during successive subparts of the processor system cycle to vital output interfaces which invert the bits of the signals or do not pass them depending upon the state of the output. A compiler including a random access memory (RAM) addressed by a read only memory (ROM) is configured to divide each sequence by direct and inverse polynomials on alternately occurring parts of the system cycle to provide compressed data. After each part of the system cycle, checkwords are constructed using the resultant compressed data corresponding to each output which must be proven to be in its `off` state.

Abstract: Apparatus for indicating the presence of power on the third rail of a transit system having two running rails and a third rail includes a first connector for connecting to the third rail and a second connector for connecting to one of the running rails and a circuit for indicating the presence of a voltage between the first connector and the second connector and thereby indicating a voltage between the one running rail and the third rail, the means for indicating including visual and audible signaling apparatus. In some forms of the invention the apparatus may include an annunciator and a strobe light. Other forms of the invention include third and fourth connectors which are magnetically held to the rails.