Chair Plate Switch Rail Actuator (point Machine)

Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to a chair plate switch rail actuator (point machine) to provide a way for safe operation of railway turnouts.

A point machine (also known as a point motor, switch machine, or switch motor) is a device used to operate railway turnouts, which are mechanisms that guide trains from one track to another. In the past, points were operated manually by levers, but modern point machines use electric motors, hydraulic, or pneumatic systems to move the switch blades. These machines perform several functions, including, moving the switch blades, locking the blades in position, and detecting and proving the position of the blades. Point machines are essential for ensuring the smooth and safe operation of railway networks, especially in complex track layouts and high-speed rail systems.

Point machines are used to move a railway point to its different positions. The point machine moves a switch blade of the railway point to its different end positions. The main rod is connected to the switch blade and moved by a driving motor of the point machine. The detector rod allows point machines to confirm that they are in their end position. The locking device locks the movement of the detector rod in the end positions. Therefore, the end positions are also called locking positions.

Traditional point machines located outside or between the rails and mounted between the sleepers, across the sleepers or inside hollowed out sleepers. The point machines operate the switch rails of the turnout via mechanical linkages that can include supports, adjustment, lost motion, electrical isolation and locking.

Therefore, a way for safe operation of railway turnouts is needed.

Briefly described, aspects of the present disclosure relate to providing a way for safe operation of railway turnouts. A chair plate switch rail actuator (point machine) is provided. A chair plate point machine provides a solution regarding a connection to a turnout and, a method of actuating switch rails. The chair plate point machine eliminates failures and maintenance requirements or the mechanical linkages between the point machine and the switch rails. It permits mechanical tamping of the turnout by eliminating any part of the point operating equipment from between the sleepers. It eliminates need for special sleepers for mounting the point machine and permit use of sleepers with uniform mechanical properties across a turnout panel. It mitigates a risk of switch rail being out of position causing a derailment of a train. It is a scalable solution from a single actuator for a catch point or swing nose crossing up to multiple pairs of actuators for high-speed turnouts. It is low cost as special sleepers, mounting brackets and mechanical linkages are not required. It involves low inventory and maintenance costs because actuators can be standardized and common for all gauges and rail profiles.

A point machine (also known as a point motor, switch machine, or switch motor) is a device used to operate railway turnouts, which are mechanisms that guide trains from one track to another. The disclosed point machine performs several functions, including, moving the switch blades, locking the blades in position, and detecting and proving the position of the blades. The disclosed point machine ensures the smooth and safe operation of railway networks, especially in complex track layouts and high-speed rail systems. The disclosed point machine operates switch rails of a turnout via mechanical linkages that can include supports, adjustment, lost motion, electrical isolation and locking.

The point machine is used to move a railway point to its different positions. The point machine moves a switch blade of the railway point to its different end positions. The main rod is connected to the switch blade and moved by a driving motor of the point machine. The detector rod allows the point machine to confirm that it is in its end position. The locking device locks the movement of the detector rod in the end positions. Therefore, the end positions are also called locking positions.

In accordance with one illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, a railway system to accurately position moving rail elements of a turnout is described. The railway system comprises at least two railway turnouts including a railway turnout comprising at least two moving or switch rails to provide a route control of the railway system. The railway turnout having at least two fixed or stock rails on the outside and the at least two moving or switch rails on the inside of the railway turnout. The railway system further comprises at least two chair plates that sit atop sleepers. The railway system further comprises at least two mechanical actuators configured to position the two moving or switch rails of the railway turnout. The railway system further comprises an electronic controller connected to the two mechanical actuators. The electronic controller communicates one or more commands to the two mechanical actuators for positioning the two moving or switch rails of the railway turnout. The electronic controller is located away from the two moving or switch rails to provide access without encroaching into a rail corridor and the two mechanical actuators are located on the railway turnout. Connections of the two mechanical actuators to the railway turnout are direct connections and distributed across the railway turnout so rather than having a single mechanical actuator in the railway system there are the two mechanical actuators directly connected to the railway turnout, and they work together in concert. The two mechanical actuators allow for hot-swapping of mechanical actuators and are completely decentralised, distributed and direct acting, thereby not having any elaborate connecting rods, pivots, supports and adjustments between a central actuator and rails. The railway system is scalable from a single actuator for a single switch rail catch-point to multiple mechanical actuators on long and large radius switches, dual gauge switches, or K crossings. The two mechanical actuators are integrated in the two chair plates and attached to the two fixed or stock rails and are integral to a railway turnout’s structure.

In accordance with one illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for accurately positioning moving rail elements of a turnout using a railway system is described. The method comprises a step of providing at least two railway turnouts including a railway turnout comprising at least two moving or switch rails to provide a route control of the railway system. The railway turnout having at least two fixed or stock rails on the outside and the at least two moving or switch rails on the inside of the railway turnout. The method further comprises providing at least two chair plates that sit atop sleepers. The method further comprises a step of providing at least two mechanical actuators configured to position the at least two moving or switch rails of the railway turnout. The method further comprises a step of providing an electronic controller connected to the at least two mechanical actuators. The electronic controller communicates one or more commands to the at least two mechanical actuators for positioning the at least two moving or switch rails of the railway turnout. The electronic controller is located away from the at least two moving or switch rails to provide access without encroaching into a rail corridor and the at least two mechanical actuators are located on the railway turnout. Connections of the at least two mechanical actuators to the railway turnout are direct connections and distributed across the railway turnout so rather than having a single mechanical actuator in the railway system there are the at least two mechanical actuators directly connected to the railway turnout, and they work together in concert. The at least two mechanical actuators allow for hot-swapping of mechanical actuators and are completely decentralised, distributed and direct acting, thereby not having any elaborate connecting rods, pivots, supports and adjustments between a central actuator and rails. The railway system is scalable from a single actuator for a single switch rail catch-point to multiple mechanical actuators on long and large radius switches, dual gauge switches, or K crossings. The at least two mechanical actuators are integrated in the at least two chair plates and attached to the at least two fixed or stock rails and are integral to a railway turnout’s structure.

In accordance with one illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, a railway system to accurately position moving rail elements of a turnout is described. The railway system comprises a railway turnout comprising at least one moving or switch rail to provide a route control of the railway system. The railway turnout has at least two fixed or stock rails on the outside and the at least one moving or switch rail on the inside of the railway turnout. The railway system further comprises at least one chair plate that sits atop a sleeper or a concrete slab and is attached to at least one fixed or stock rail of at least two fixed or stock rails. The railway system further comprises at least one servo-actuator to control a position of the one moving or switch rail of the railway turnout. The one servo-actuator is integrated in the one chair plate and attached to the one fixed or stock rail and is integral to a railway turnout’s structure. The one servo-actuator is directly connected to the one moving or switch rail of the railway turnout thereby not having any distributed connecting rods, pivots, supports and adjustments between the one servo-actuator and rails. The railway system is scalable from a single servo-actuator for a single switch rail catch turnout to multiple servo-actuators on long and large radius turnout, dual gauge turnouts, or K crossing turnouts.

The above-described features and advantages, as well as others, will become more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reference to the following detailed description and accompanying drawings. While it would be desirable to provide one or more of these or other advantageous features, the teachings disclosed herein extend to those embodiments which fall within the scope of the appended claims, regardless of whether they accomplish one or more of the above-mentioned advantages.

Various technologies pertain to a railway system to accurately position moving rail elements of a turnout using an actuator of a point machine. The drawings discussed below, and the various embodiments used to describe the principles of the present disclosure in this patent document are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the disclosure. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented in any suitably arranged apparatus. It is to be understood that functionality that is described as being carried out by certain system elements may be performed by multiple elements. Similarly, for instance, an element may be configured to perform functionality that is described as being carried out by multiple elements. The numerous innovative teachings of the present application will be described with reference to exemplary non-limiting embodiments.

To facilitate an understanding of embodiments, principles, and features of the present disclosure, they are explained hereinafter with reference to implementation in illustrative embodiments. In particular, they are described in the context of a railway system to accurately position the moving rails of a railway turnout using a mechanical actuator of a chair plate point machine to provide a route control of the railway system. Embodiments of the present disclosure, however, are not limited to use in the described systems or methods.

The components and materials described hereinafter as making up the various embodiments are intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many suitable components and materials that would perform the same or a similar function as the materials described herein are intended to be embraced within the scope of embodiments of the present disclosure.

1 5 FIGS.- These and other embodiments of the railway system according to the present disclosure are described below with reference toherein. The drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

1 FIG. 105 105 105 112 1 107 1 110 1 105 105 112 1 2 112 1 Consistent with an embodiment of the present disclosure,represents a schematic of a railway systemin accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The railway systemis configured to accurately position moving rail elements of a turnout. For example, the railway systemaccurately positions moving rails of a railway turnout() using a mechanical actuator() of a chair plate point machine() to provide a route control of the railway system. The railway systemcomprises at least two railway turnouts(-) including the railway turnout().

107 1 107 1 6 110 1 6 110 112 115 1 6 110 117 1 6 110 115 1 6 A chair plate switch rail actuator() of multiple such as six actuators(-) of each chair plate point machine(-) is provided. A chair plate point machineprovides a solution regarding a connection to a railway turnoutand, a method of actuating moving or switch rails(-). The chair plate point machineeliminates failures and maintenance requirements or mechanical linkages(-) between the chair plate point machineand the switch rails(-).

110 112 122 110 122 115 107 1 6 112 1 6 122 117 1 6 107 1 6 The chair plate point machinepermits mechanical tamping of the railway turnoutby eliminating any part of point operating equipment from between sleepers. It eliminates need for special sleepers for mounting the chair plate point machineand permit use of the sleeperswith uniform mechanical properties across a turnout panel (not shown). It mitigates a risk of a switch railbeing out of position causing a derailment of a train. It is a scalable solution from a single actuator for a catch point or swing nose crossing up to multiple pairs of actuators(-) for high-speed turnouts(-). It is low cost as special sleepers, mounting brackets and the mechanical linkages(-) are not required. It involves low inventory and maintenance costs because the actuators(-) can be standardized and common for all gauges and rail profiles.

110 112 1 6 110 110 110 115 1 6 112 117 1 6 The chair plate point machine(also known as a point motor, switch machine, or switch motor) is a device used to operate railway turnouts(-), which are mechanisms that guide trains from one track to another. The chair plate point machineperforms several functions, including, moving the switch blades, locking the blades in position, and detecting and proving the position of the blades. The chair plate point machineensures the smooth and safe operation of railway networks, especially in complex track layouts and high-speed rail systems. The chair plate point machineoperates the switch rails(-) of the railway turnoutvia the mechanical linkages(-) that can include supports, adjustment, lost motion, electrical isolation and locking.

110 110 110 110 The chair plate point machineis used to move a railway point to its different positions. The chair plate point machinemoves a switch blade of the railway point to its different end positions. A main rod is connected to the switch blade and moved by a driving motor of the chair plate point machine. A detector rod allows the chair plate point machineto confirm that it is in its end position. A locking device locks the movement of the detector rod in the end positions. Therefore, the end positions are also called locking positions.

105 112 1 6 115 105 105 107 1 2 115 112 105 130 107 1 2 130 135 107 1 2 107 1 2 112 1 2 The railway systemcomprises the railway turnouts(-) which comprises the moving or switch railsto provide a route control of the railway system. The railway systemfurther comprises at least two mechanical actuators(-) configured to position the moving or switch railsof the railway turnout. The railway systemfurther comprises an electronic controllerconnected to the at least two mechanical actuators(-). The electronic controllercommunicates one or more commandsto the at least two mechanical actuators(-) for positioning(-) of the railway turnouts(-).

130 115 1 6 107 1 2 112 107 1 2 112 1 2 112 105 107 1 2 112 1 2 112 137 1 2 115 1 2 112 115 1 2 137 137 The electronic controlleris located away from the moving or switch rails(-) to provide access without encroaching into a rail corridor and the at least two mechanical actuators(-) are located on the railway turnout. Connections of the at least two mechanical actuators(-) to the railway turnouts(-) are direct connections and distributed across the railway turnoutso rather than having a single mechanical actuator in the railway systemthere are the at least two mechanical actuators(-) directly connected to the railway turnouts(-), and they work together in concert. The railway turnoutis with at least two fixed or stock rails(-) on the outside and at least two moving or switch rails(-) on the inside of the railway turnout. Two moving or switch rails(-) are arranged so that moving them towards one fixed or stock railwill set one route and moving them to another fixed railwill set an alternative route.

130 107 1 2 112 132 112 130 107 1 2 140 107 1 2 130 142 145 147 107 1 2 142 147 130 107 1 2 147 The electronic controllercontrols movement of all the two mechanical actuators(-) on the railway turnoutand provides an interface to a railway signaling systemallowing the latter to set a route of the railway turnoutand confirm that the route has been set and is secure such that it cannot move un-commanded. The electronic controlleris connected to the two mechanical actuators(-) with cablesthat provide electrical power and control to electric motors (not seen) and allow a position feedback from the two mechanical actuators(-). The electronic controllercomprises hardware including a memoryand softwarefor functions of control, feedback and diagnostics, involving a method for setting one or more operational parametersof the two mechanical actuators(-) and using the memoryfor storing this information including the one or more operational parameterssuch that the electronic controllerwill allow hot swapping of the two mechanical actuators(-) so that the one or more operational parametersare carried over to a replacement mechanical actuator.

107 1 2 115 1 2 107 1 2 115 107 1 2 136 132 115 Each mechanical actuator of the two mechanical actuators(-) is an electromechanical drive mechanism that moves a switch rail of the two moving or switch rails(-) between two positions vis à vis an open position and a closed position. Each mechanical actuator of the two mechanical actuators(-) also provide a restraining force on the switch railthat prevents it being moved by an external force. Each mechanical actuator of the two mechanical actuators(-) has a positional feedback mechanismthat allows the railway signaling systemto confirm a position of the switch railand the state of the electromechanical drive mechanism.

105 105 112 115 1 2 105 112 137 1 2 115 1 2 112 105 In accordance with one illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, the railway systemto accurately position moving rail elements of a turnout is described. The railway systemcomprises the railway turnoutcomprising at least two moving or switch rails(-) to provide a route control of the railway system. The railway turnouthaving a fixed or stock rail of at least two fixed or stock rails(-) on the outside and moving or switch rail of the at least two moving or switch rails(-) on the inside of the railway turnout. The railway systemfurther comprises at least two chair plates that sit atop sleepers.

105 107 1 2 115 1 2 112 105 130 107 1 2 130 107 1 2 115 1 2 112 130 115 1 2 107 1 2 112 The railway systemfurther comprises at least two mechanical actuators(-) configured to position a respective one of the at least two moving or switch rails(-) of the railway turnout. The railway systemfurther comprises the electronic controllerconnected to the two mechanical actuators(-). The electronic controllercommunicates one or more commands to the two mechanical actuators(-) for positioning the two moving or switch rails(-) of a respective one of the railway turnout. The electronic controlleris located away from the two moving or switch rails(-) to provide access without encroaching into a rail corridor and two mechanical actuators(-) are located on a respective one of the railway turnout.

107 1 2 112 112 105 107 1 2 112 107 1 2 Connections of the two mechanical actuators(-) to a respective one of the railway turnoutare direct connections and distributed across the railway turnoutso rather than having a single mechanical actuator in the railway systemthere are two mechanical actuators(-) directly connected to a respective one of the railway turnout, and they work together in concert. The at least two mechanical actuators(-) allow for hot-swapping of mechanical actuators and are completely decentralised, distributed and direct acting, thereby not having any elaborate connecting rods, pivots, supports and adjustments between a central actuator and rails.

105 The railway systemis scalable from a single actuator for a single switch rail catch-point to multiple mechanical actuators on long and large radius switches, dual gauge switches, or K crossings. The two mechanical actuators are integrated in a respective one of the at least two chair plates and attached to a respective one of the at least two fixed or stock rails and are integral to a railway turnout’s structure.

105 The railway systemfurther comprises at least two mechanical actuators configured to position the two moving or switch rails of the railway turnout. The railway system further comprises an electronic controller connected to the two mechanical actuators. The electronic controller communicates one or more commands to the two mechanical actuators for positioning the two moving or switch rails of the railway turnout. The electronic controller is located away from the two moving or switch rails to provide access without encroaching into a rail corridor and the two mechanical actuators are located on the railway turnout. Connections of the two mechanical actuators to the railway turnout are direct connections and distributed across the railway turnout so rather than having a single mechanical actuator in the railway system there are the two mechanical actuators directly connected to the railway turnout, and they work together in concert. The two mechanical actuators allow for hot-swapping of mechanical actuators and are completely decentralised, distributed and direct acting, thereby not having any elaborate connecting rods, pivots, supports and adjustments between a central actuator and rails. The railway system is scalable from a single actuator for a single switch rail catch-point to multiple mechanical actuators on long and large radius switches, dual gauge switches, or K crossings. The two mechanical actuators are integrated in the two chair plates and attached to the two fixed or stock rails and are integral to a railway turnout’s structure.

2 FIG. 1 FIG. 207 210 105 207 107 1 2 220 212 237 137 215 115 207 107 1 2 207 107 1 2 220 Referring to, it illustrates a cross-sectional view of an actuatorof a point machineto provide a route control of the railway systemat a line A-A’ inin accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Each mechanical actuatorof the two mechanical actuators(-) is mechanically integrated into a chair-plateof a railway turnoutso that it is a platform for a stock or fixed railof the two fixed or stock rails, a moving or switch railof the two moving or switch railsand each mechanical actuatorof the two mechanical actuators(-), ensuring a dimensional stability that is inherent in a structure and forces and stresses are self-contained within an assembly. Each mechanical actuatorof the two mechanical actuators(-) is configured to be removeable from the chair-platefor servicing or replacement.

3 FIG. 330 330 335 330 340 330 345 330 350 330 355 360 330 365 1 3 370 330 375 345 135 Turning now to, it illustrates a schematic of an electronic controllerin accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The electronic controllerincludes a local interlocking logicwith integration of train detection for approach or route locking and signal control. The electronic controllerfurther includes meansfor local manual control of route setting for shunting or maintenance purposes. The electronic controllerfurther includes a local energy storagesuch as capacitors or use sequencing of actuators to reduce the maximum power consumption at anyone of them. The electronic controllerfurther includes meansfor handling sensors inputs for condition monitoring and fault diagnosis. The electronic controllerfurther includes local push buttonsand a display/HMI. The electronic controllerfurther includes three connectors(-) and a diagnostic port. The electronic controllerfurther includes softwarestored in the storageto provide the commands.

4 FIG. 1 FIG. 405 407 412 407 107 1 2 410 413 415 417 440 413 442 415 413 415 445 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a railway systemthat includes a mechanical actuatorand a railway turnoutat a line A-A’ inin accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Each mechanical actuatorof the two mechanical actuators(-) have an electromechanical drive mechanismwhich comprises an electric motorsuch as a brushless DC (BLDC) motor, a transmissionand an escapementenclosed in a housing. The electric motoris a high torque, low speed axial flux, brushless motor with a magnetic encoder (MAG ENC)and the transmissionis a single stage cycloidal or a stain wave reduction. The electric motoris connected to the transmissionwhich is further connected to an output shaft.

410 420 422 420 420 410 The electromechanical drive mechanismhas a feature that prevents a moving or switch railof at least two moving or switch rails being moved from an open position to a closed position by an external force. The feature in a form of a locking “knee” jointat a connection to the moving or switch rail. Position detection provides a mechanism for confirming a position of the moving or switch railindependent of the electromechanical drive mechanism.

405 455 457 460 462 465 440 470 457 470 405 430 407 The railway systemfurther includes a chair plate, a fixed rail, a switch rail position detector, a switch rail link, electrical connectorsof the housing. The actuator is coupled to a sleepervia screws. The fixed railalso sits on the sleeper. The railway systemfurther includes an electronic controllerconnected to the mechanical actuator.

Alternatively drive and locking embodiments may include besides a drive mechanism that is implemented using a brushless Direct Current (DC) axial flux motor and cycloidal gear-train (such as is used for robotics), an Alternating Current (AC) servo motor and an epicycle or harmonic gear-train. Likewise, the described locking is implemented with a locking “knee” joint but may also be implemented using some form of a trapezoidal lock escapement lock or even a separate servo actuated locking bolt and slot.

105 105 105 105 105 In one embodiment, the railway systemto accurately position moving rail elements of a turnout is provided. The railway systemcomprises a railway turnout comprising at least one moving or switch rail to provide a route control of the railway system. The railway turnout has at least two fixed or stock rails on the outside and the one moving or switch rail on the inside of the railway turnout. The railway systemfurther comprises at least one chair plate that sits atop a sleeper or a concrete slab and is attached to at least one fixed or stock rail of at least two fixed or stock rails. The railway systemfurther comprises at least one servo-actuator to control a position of the one moving or switch rail of the railway turnout. The one servo-actuator is integrated in the chair plate and attached to the one fixed or stock rail and is integral to a railway turnout’s structure. The one servo-actuator is directly connected to the one moving or switch rail of the railway turnout thereby not having any distributed connecting rods, pivots, supports and adjustments between the one servo-actuator and rails. The railway systemis scalable from a single servo-actuator for a single switch rail catch turnout to multiple servo-actuators on long and large radius turnout, dual gauge turnouts, or K crossing turnouts.

105 When there is more than one servo-actuator, they are distributed across the railway turnout so that the at least one servo-actuator is directly connected to the at least one moving or switch rail. In the railway system, one servo-actuator provides positional and diagnostic status information to the electronic servo-actuator controller.

105 The railway systemfurther comprises an electronic servo-actuator controller, wherein the electronic servo-actuator controller is located away from the railway turnout to provide personnel safe access without encroaching into a railway traffic corridor and the railway turnout. The electronic servo-actuator controller is electrically connected to the at least one servo-actuator using wired connections. The electronic servo-actuator controller: receives commands from a railway route setting system, transmits turnout status to a railway signaling system, communicates one or more commands to the at least one servo-actuator for positioning the at least one moving or switch rail of the railway turnout, controls a position of all servo-actuators connected to the electronic servo-actuator controller, and retains operational parameters to allow for hot-swapping of the at least one servo-actuator.

5 FIG. 1 FIG. 4 FIG. 1 4 FIGS.- 500 105 405 As seen in, it shows a flow chart for a methodfor accurately positioning moving rail elements of a turnout using the railway systemoforofaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Reference is made to the elements and features described in. It should be appreciated that some steps are not required to be performed in any particular order, and that some steps are optional.

500 505 112 412 120 420 105 405 500 510 107 1 2 407 120 420 112 500 515 130 430 407 The methodcomprises a stepof providing the railway turnout,comprising moving rails,to provide a route control of the railway system,. The methodfurther comprises a stepof providing at least two mechanical actuators(-),configured to position the moving rails,of the railway turnouts. The methodfurther comprises a stepof providing the electronic controller,connected to the mechanical actuator.

430 135 407 420 412 430 120 420 407 412 407 412 412 405 407 412 The electronic controllercommunicates one or more software commandsas software instructions from a software code to the mechanical actuatorfor positioning the moving railsof the railway turnout. The electronic controlleris located away from the moving rails,to provide access without encroaching into a rail corridor and the mechanical actuatorare located on the railway turnout. The connections of the mechanical actuatorto the railway turnoutare direct connections and distributed across the railway turnoutso rather than having a single mechanical actuator in the railway systemthere are the at least two mechanical actuatorsdirectly connected to the railway turnout, and they work together in concert.

105 112 1 105 112 1 2 112 1 112 1 A method for accurately positioning moving rail elements of a turnout using the railway systemis provided. The method comprises a step of providing a railway turnout() comprising at least two moving or switch rails to provide a route control of the railway system. The railway systemcomprises at least two railway turnouts(-) including the railway turnout(). The railway turnout() having at least two fixed or stock rails on the outside and the at least two moving or switch rails on the inside of the railway turnout. The method further comprises providing at least two chair plates that sit atop sleepers. The method further comprises a step of providing at least two mechanical actuators configured to position the at least two moving or switch rails of the railway turnout. The method further comprises a step of providing an electronic controller connected to the at least two mechanical actuators.

The electronic controller communicates one or more commands to the at least two mechanical actuators for positioning the at least two moving or switch rails of the railway turnout. The electronic controller is located away from the at least two moving or switch rails to provide access without encroaching into a rail corridor and the at least two mechanical actuators are located on the railway turnout. Connections of the at least two mechanical actuators to the railway turnout are direct connections and distributed across the railway turnout so rather than having a single mechanical actuator in the railway system there are the at least two mechanical actuators directly connected to the railway turnout, and they work together in concert. The at least two mechanical actuators allow for hot-swapping of mechanical actuators and are completely decentralised, distributed and direct acting, thereby not having any elaborate connecting rods, pivots, supports and adjustments between a central actuator and rails. The railway system is scalable from a single actuator for a single switch rail catch-point to multiple mechanical actuators on long and large radius switches, dual gauge switches, or K crossings. The at least two mechanical actuators are integrated in the at least two chair plates and attached to the at least two fixed or stock rails and are integral to a railway turnout’s structure.

The chair-plate mounted actuators are completely decentralised and distributed and direct acting, thereby doing away with elaborate connecting rods, pivots, supports and adjustments between a central actuator and the rails. This will eliminate a significant source of system failure resulting from incorrect adjustments, inadequate maintenance, thermal expansion and damage due to (cow) impacts on slender rods. Another benefit of a distributed system is that is it fully scalable from a single actuator for a single switch rail catch-point (for derailing run-away wagons), to multiple actuators on long and large radius switches, dual gauge switches, K crossings etc. A decentralised system also provides multiple levels of redundancy and allows for hot-swapping of the actuators to maximise availability, reduced individual power consumption and the actuators themselves can be kept relatively small and low powered and low cost.

The chair-plate mounted actuators are integrated in the chair plates that sit atop the sleepers and attached to the fixed rails and are integral to the turnout’s structure. This feature allows for use of whatever track supports already exists elsewhere such as sleepers or concrete slab and eliminates the need for special sleepers and tie-plate to accommodate a traditional switch operating machines (reduced costs, improved ride dynamics and less wear and tear). Further, the concept uses the chair plate as a stress member to withstand forces that will occur between the fixed and moving rails (especially when a train passes), ensuring dimensional stability and reliable operation. The compact and confined nature of a chair-plate mounted actuator also permits mechanical tamping (ballast conditioning) without the need for hollow sleepers.

While a specific chair plate point machine that operates a specific railway turnout using a specific mechanical actuator is disclosed, other number of designs, combinations or partial combinations are also possible. For example, other railway platforms may be implemented based on one or more features presented above without deviating from the spirit of the present disclosure.

The techniques described herein can be particularly useful for a mechanical actuator, a BLDC motor and a locking knee joint combination. While particular embodiments are described in terms of a mechanical actuator, a BLDC motor and a locking knee joint combination, the techniques described herein are not limited to such a combination.

While embodiments of the present disclosure have been disclosed in exemplary forms, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many modifications, additions, and deletions can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure and its equivalents, as set forth in the following claims.

Embodiments and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained more fully with reference to the non-limiting embodiments that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and detailed in the following description. Descriptions of well-known starting materials, processing techniques, components and equipment are omitted so as not to unnecessarily obscure embodiments in detail. It should be understood, however, that the detailed description and the specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments, are given by way of illustration only and not by way of limitation. Various substitutions, modifications, additions and/or rearrangements within the spirit and/or scope of the underlying inventive concept will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure.

As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “having” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, article, or apparatus.

Additionally, any examples or illustrations given herein are not to be regarded in any way as restrictions on, limits to, or express definitions of, any term or terms with which they are utilized. Instead, these examples or illustrations are to be regarded as being described with respect to one particular embodiment and as illustrative only. Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any term or terms with which these examples or illustrations are utilized will encompass other embodiments which may or may not be given therewith or elsewhere in the specification and all such embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of that term or terms.

In the foregoing specification, the disclosure has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, one of ordinary skill in the art appreciates that various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the specification and figures are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of disclosure.

Although the disclosure has been described with respect to specific embodiments thereof, these embodiments are merely illustrative, and not restrictive of the disclosure. The description herein of illustrated embodiments of the disclosure is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed herein (and in particular, the inclusion of any particular embodiment, feature or function is not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure to such embodiment, feature or function). Rather, the description is intended to describe illustrative embodiments, features and functions in order to provide a person of ordinary skill in the art context to understand the disclosure without limiting the disclosure to any particularly described embodiment, feature or function. While specific embodiments of, and examples for, the disclosure are described herein for illustrative purposes only, various equivalent modifications are possible within the spirit and scope of the disclosure, as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize and appreciate. As indicated, these modifications may be made to the disclosure in light of the foregoing description of illustrated embodiments of the disclosure and are to be included within the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Thus, while the disclosure has been described herein with reference to particular embodiments thereof, a latitude of modification, various changes and substitutions are intended in the foregoing disclosures, and it will be appreciated that in some instances some features of embodiments of the disclosure will be employed without a corresponding use of other features without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure as set forth. Therefore, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the essential scope and spirit of the disclosure.

Respective appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment," "in an embodiment," or "in a specific embodiment" or similar terminology in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics of any particular embodiment may be combined in any suitable manner with one or more other embodiments. It is to be understood that other variations and modifications of the embodiments described and illustrated herein are possible in light of the teachings herein and are to be considered as part of the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

In the description herein, numerous specific details are provided, such as examples of components and/or methods, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the disclosure. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that an embodiment may be able to be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other apparatus, systems, assemblies, methods, components, materials, parts, and/or the like. In other instances, well-known structures, components, systems, materials, or operations are not specifically shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of embodiments of the disclosure. While the disclosure may be illustrated by using a particular embodiment, this is not and does not limit the disclosure to any particular embodiment and a person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that additional embodiments are readily understandable and are a part of this disclosure.

It will also be appreciated that one or more of the elements depicted in the drawings/figures can also be implemented in a more separated or integrated manner, or even removed or rendered as inoperable in certain cases, as is useful in accordance with a particular application.

Benefits, other advantages, and solutions to problems have been described above with regard to specific embodiments. However, the benefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any component(s) that may cause any benefit, advantage, or solution to occur or become more pronounced are not to be construed as a critical, required, or essential feature or component.