Knuckle (AAR Type "E") couplers in use A coupling (or a coupler) is a mechanism for connecting railway cars in a train. The design of these couplings is a standard almost as important as the railway gauge, since flexibility and convenience are maximised if the couplings can work together no matter what order they come in. Download high resolution version (655x651, 90 KB)Railroad couplers in use at Beacon Yard, Boston. ...
Download high resolution version (655x651, 90 KB)Railroad couplers in use at Beacon Yard, Boston. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 418 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1331 × 1907 pixel, file size: 488 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Author: Old Sarge @ Flickr File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 418 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1331 × 1907 pixel, file size: 488 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Author: Old Sarge @ Flickr File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...
A railroad car (or, more briefly, car, not to be confused with railcar), also known as an item of rolling stock, is a vehicle on a railroad (or railway) that is not a locomotive — one that provides another purpose than purely haulage, although some types of car are powered. ...
Rail gauge is the distance between two rails of a railroad. ...
Buffers and chain
Traditional buffer-and-chain coupler
 Buffer and chain coupler with knuckle swung out of the way. The type of coupling established as standard on railways following the British tradition is the buffers and chain coupling found on the pioneering Liverpool and Manchester Railway of 1830. These couplings followed earlier tramway practice but were made more regular. The cars are coupled by hand using hook and link system with a turnbuckle-like device that draws the cars together. In Britain, this is called a Screw coupling. Cars have buffers, one at each corner on the ends, which are pulled together and compressed by the coupling device. This arrangement limits the slack in trains and lessens shocks. In contrast the Janney couplers encourage violent encounters in order to engage the coupling fully. The earliest buffers were fixed, being extensions of the frames of the wagons, but later on, spring buffers were introduced. Download high resolution version (903x744, 127 KB)This is a good image of a traditional European train coupler taken from the German Wikipedia. ...
Download high resolution version (903x744, 127 KB)This is a good image of a traditional European train coupler taken from the German Wikipedia. ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1227x821, 160 KB) railway coupler (in germany called Schraubenkupplung) * my own photo from summer 2004 * File links The following pages link to this file: Coupling (railway) ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1227x821, 160 KB) railway coupler (in germany called Schraubenkupplung) * my own photo from summer 2004 * File links The following pages link to this file: Coupling (railway) ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 859 KB) The coupling mechanism on GNER Class 91 electric locomotive 91116 Strathclyde, photographed at platforms 6 of Leeds City railway station. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 859 KB) The coupling mechanism on GNER Class 91 electric locomotive 91116 Strathclyde, photographed at platforms 6 of Leeds City railway station. ...
The Buffer in railway transport is part of the coupling system for railway vehicles. ...
The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the worlds first intercity passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and operated for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives. ...
Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution 1830 (MDCCCXXX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...
This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...
A turnbuckle is a device for adjusting the tension in ropes, cables, and tie rods. ...
The Buffer in railway transport is part of the coupling system for railway vehicles. ...
Knuckle (AAR Type E) couplers in use AAR Type E railroad car coupling A coupling (or a coupler) is a mechanism for connecting railway cars in a train. ...
Not only inefficient and slow, the European hand-coupled system is relatively unsafe for the rail workers because they are easily squashed between the buffers. With central couplers (except link and pin) it is not usually necessary to get between the cars for coupling or uncoupling. The safety issue was one of the main arguments for changing to central couplers. But even after over 30 years, the change has still not been completed
The hooks and chain hold the carriages together, while the buffers keep the carriages from banging into each other so that no damage is caused. The buffers can be "dumb" or spring-loaded, or indeed a mixture.
Early rolling stock was often fitted with a pair of auxiliary chains, as a backup if the main coupling were to fail. This made sense before the fitting of continuous and failsafe braking systems, whether air- or vacuum-based.
On railways where rolling stock always pointed the same way, the chain might be mounted at one end only, as a small cost- and weight-saving method.
On German railways, one buffer is flatter than the other buffer which is slightly more rounded. This provides better contact between the buffers than would be the case if both buffers were slightly rounded. In Germany the Deutsche Bahn (formerly state-owned company) is the main provider of railway service. ...
Three link couplings A peculiarly British institution was the "loose-coupled" freight train. This used three-link couplings with no means of drawing the wagons together so they banged into each other when the locomotive's brakes were applied. Such trains were limited to 25 miles per hour.
A slight improvement on this was the "Instanter" coupling, in which the middle link of a three link chain is specially shaped so that when lying "prone" it provides enough slack to make coupling possible, but when this middle link is rotated 90 degrees, the length of the chain is effectively shortened, reducing the amount of slack, without the need to wind a screw. This variation is used only on freight wagons.
Problems with buffers and chain The buffers and chain coupling system has a maximum load much less that the Janney coupling. Also, on sharp reverse curves, the buffers can get bufferlocked by somehow getting on the wrong side of the adjacent buffer. An accident at a Swiss station was caused by bufferlocked wagons in the 1980s.
Variation with gauge The distance between the buffers tends to increase as the gauge increases, so that if wagons are changed from one gauge to another, the buffers will no longer match. This occurs because the buffers are originally extensions of the frames, which are spaced according to the gauge.
On some narrow-gauge lines in Europe, a simplified version is used, consisting of a single central buffer with a chain underneath. The chain usually contains a screw-adjustable link to allow close coupling. On sharp curves, a single centre buffer is less likely to be subject to buffer locking problem, as described above. World map showing the location of Europe. ...
Dual coupling It is possible to mount both buffers and chain and knuckle couplers on the same car, provided that one can swing out of the way.
Locomotives as well as some freight cars of the Indian Railways are fitted with a 'transition coupler' that incorporates a screw coupling within a knuckle coupler. However, the knuckle coupler remains in position and does not swing away when not in use. The screw coupling is mounted on a lug within the knuckle coupler. Most Indian freight cars use the knuckle coupler alone, without buffers, whereas passenger coaches almost exclusively use screw couplers and buffers. Exceptions are the new LHB coaches imported from Europe, and a few other makes of carriages converted to use knuckle couplers. [1]
Some Russian locomotives and wagons have buffers together with the central coupler. When coupling to Finnish equipment, a short chain with a block that fits in the central coupler is placed on the Russian side, backs up and compresses the buffers so that you can lay the chain on the hook. (That is also the common way of coupling locomotives to or from waggons. Doing it that way is faster than unscrewing the link.)
Link and pin
 The coupler pocket (just below the two lights) for a link and pin coupler on a 15 inch (381 mm) gauge speeder. The link and pin coupling was the original style of coupling used on American railways, surviving after conversion to Janney couplings on forestry railways. While simple in principle, the link and pin coupling suffered from a lack of standardisation regarding size and height of the links. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (543x819, 84 KB) Summary The coupler pocket for a link and pin coupler Photo by Sean Lamb (User:Slambo), February 19, 2006 Licensing File links The following pages link to this file: User:Slambo/Gallery Coupling (railway) Metadata This file contains...
Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (543x819, 84 KB) Summary The coupler pocket for a link and pin coupler Photo by Sean Lamb (User:Slambo), February 19, 2006 Licensing File links The following pages link to this file: User:Slambo/Gallery Coupling (railway) Metadata This file contains...
An inch (plural: inches; symbol or abbreviation: in or, sometimes, ″ - a double prime) is the name of a unit of length in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ...
A millimetre (American spelling: millimeter, symbol mm) is an SI unit of length that is equal to one thousandth of a metre. ...
The dominant rail gauge in each country shown Rail gauge is the distance between the inner sides of the two parallel rails that make up a railway track. ...
A privately-owned speeder on display at a model railroad show in February 2004. ...
The link and pin coupler consisted of a tubelike body that received an oblong link. During coupling, a railworker had to stand between the cars as they came together and guide the link into the coupler pocket. Once the cars were joined, the employee inserted a pin into a hole a few inches from the end of the tube to hold the link in place. This procedure was exceptionally dangerous and many brakemen lost fingers or entire hands when they did not get their hands out of the way of the coupler pockets; many more were killed as a result of being crushed between cars or dragged under cars that were coupled too quickly. Brakemen were issued with heavy clubs that could be used to hold the link in position, but many brakemen would forgo the club's use and risk injury.
The link and pin coupler ultimately proved unsatisfactory because:
- It made a loose connection between the cars, with too much slack action.
- There was no standard design, and train crews often spent hours trying to match pins and links while coupling cars.
- The links and pins were often pilfered (due to their value as scrap metal), resulting in substantial replacement costs. John H. White suggests that the railroads considered this to be more important than the safety issue at the time (see reference below).
- Crew members had to go between moving cars during coupling, and were frequently injured and sometimes killed.
- Eventually, railroads wished to operate trains that were heavier than the link and pin system could cope with.
An episode of the 1960s TV series Casey Jones was devoted to the problems of link and pin couplings. Portrait of The Brave Engineer himself: John Luther Casey Jones, 1863-1900. ...
Meatchopper
 Meatchopper coupling from Uganda Meatchopper (also known as Norwegian) couplings consist of a central buffer with a mechanical hook that drops into a slot in the central buffer. The hook resembles a meat chopper, hence the name. The meatchopper is found only on narrow gauge railways, such as the Ffestiniog Railway and the Welsh Highland Railway, where low speeds and reduced train loads allow a simpler system. On railway lines where rolling stock always points the same way, the mechanical hook may be provided only on one end of each wagon. This was the situation on the Lynton & Barnstaple (L&B), a narrow gauge line in Devon, England. Similarly, the hand brake handles may also be on one side of the wagons only. Image File history File links Alco. ...
Image File history File links Alco. ...
Light railways made an important contribution to the Allied war effort in World War I. They were used for the supply of ammunition and stores, the transport of troops and the evacuation of the wounded. ...
The Ffestiniog Railway (in Welsh Rheilffordd Ffestiniog) is a narrow-gauge heritage railway, located in North West Wales. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 533 pixelsFull resolution (900 × 600 pixel, file size: 161 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Uganda Railways Corporation locomotives at Kampala Railway Station, Uganda, 23 November 2006. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 533 pixelsFull resolution (900 × 600 pixel, file size: 161 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Uganda Railways Corporation locomotives at Kampala Railway Station, Uganda, 23 November 2006. ...
The Ffestiniog Railway (in Welsh Rheilffordd Ffestiniog) is a narrow-gauge heritage railway, located in North West Wales. ...
The route of the WHR. The Welsh Highland Railway (WHR) is a narrow gauge railway in Wales, which originally ran from Dinas near Caernarfon to Porthmadog, with a branch line to Bryngwyn and the slate quarries at Moel Tryfan. ...
The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway (L&B) was a narrow-gauge railway running through the rugged and picturesque countryside of Exmoor in North Devon, England. ...
“Devonshire†redirects here. ...
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Meatchopper couplings are not particularly strong, and may be supplemented by auxiliary chains. The L&B originally used side chains in conjunction with Norwegian couplers, but these were found to be unnecessary with the slow speeds employed (10-15 miles per hour) and were removed within a year or so of the line opening in 1898. Year 1898 (MDCCCXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...
The Pichi Richi Railway in South Australia uses meatchopper couplers as its standard, and converts Janney coupler to meatchopper as required. Fortunately, the slot in the "buffer beam" where the coupler sticks out appears to be about the same for both types of couplers. As a museum, it is appropriate to use the more old-fashioned type of coupling. The Pichi Richi Railway is a tourist railway using parts of the former Central Australia Railway. ...
Capital Adelaide Government Constitutional monarchy Governor Marjorie Jackson-Nelson Premier Mike Rann (ALP) Federal representation - House seats 11 - Senate seats 12 Gross State Product (2004-05) - Product ($m) $59,819 (5th) - Product per capita $38,838/person (7th) Population (End of September 2006) - Population 1,558,200 (5th) - Density 1. ...
Not all meatchopper couplings are compatible with one another, they vary in height, width, and may or may not be limited to one hook at a time.
Automatic couplers There are a number of automatic train couplings, most of which are mutually incompatible. - AAR (American Association of Railroads) coupler (also known as knuckle coupler and once known as Janney coupler, see below) used in Canada, the USA, Mexico, Japan, Australia, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Cuba, Chile, Brazil, China and elsewhere.
- Maximum tonnage as high as 30,000 t.
- The AAR coupling comes in at least two sizes, "full size" and "three quarter" which are not compatible. Lighter weight railways, especially those of narrow gauge, with no need for interrunning, sometimes use smaller (3/4 or half size) versions of the AAR coupling. AAR (Janney) couplings are always righthanded.
- The AAR couplers (or Janney couplings) are not necessarily mounted at the same height above rail, but within reason, this can be tolerated.
- Uncoupling AAR couplers is done by lifting the coupling pin with a lever located at the corner of the railway car. This pin is locked when the coupler is under tension, so the usual uncoupling steps are to compress the coupling with a locomotive, lift and hold up the pin, then pull the cars apart. Side operated variants are called the "Sharon coupler" or "Buckeye coupler" [2].
- Trains fitted with AAR couplers can have heavier loads than any other type of coupler. Thus the heaviest coal trains in New Zealand have AAR couplings even though the remainder of the fleet has the meatchopper kind. Also, long-distance freight trains in North America are quite commonly more than a mile (1.6 km) long, whereas this is unknown in Europe, where most freight trains still use the buffers and chain system.
- See also "Janney Coupler" and "changes since 1873" below.
- Russian SA3 coupler , also known as a "Willison Coupler with a Russian contour", (somewhat similar to Janney) used in Russia, former Soviet Union, Finland, Mongolia and Iraq. See also: Animation showing SA3 coupling (site only in Russian)
- Russian trains rarely exceed a maximum tonnage about 6,000 t, so it is not clear what load these couplings are capable of.
- The effort to break the SA-3 coupler is about 300 t.
- European proposal coupler, (compatible with the Russian coupler) with automatic air, control and power connections. Implementation permanently delayed except for a few users.
- Scharfenberg coupler used on electric passenger trains - connects brake and controls. See Fully Automatic Couplings below.
- Maximum tonnage about 1,000 t.
- Note: There exist a number of other automatic train couplings similar to the Scharfenberg coupler, but not necessarely compatible with it. Older US transit operators continue to use these non-Janney electro-pneumatic coupler designs and have used them in service for decades.
Categories: Organization stubs | Rail transport | Industry trade groups ...
World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ...
World map showing the location of Europe. ...
Janney coupler Later Master Car Builders Association coupler, now AAR (American Association of Railroads) coupler, see also AAR coupler above. Categories: Organization stubs | Rail transport | Industry trade groups ...
 Diagram of the top view of Janney's coupler design as published in his patent application in 1873. Janney couplings are always righthanded. Download high resolution version (876x452, 51 KB)Diagram of a knuckle coupler designed by Eli H. Janney. ...
Download high resolution version (876x452, 51 KB)Diagram of a knuckle coupler designed by Eli H. Janney. ...
1873 (MDCCCLXXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...
The knuckle coupler (or Janney coupler) was invented by Eli H. Janney, who received a patent in 1873 (U.S. Patent 138,405 ). It is also known as a "buckeye coupler", notably in the United Kingdom, where some rolling stock (mostly for passenger trains) is fitted with it. Janney was a dry goods clerk and former Confederate Army officer from Alexandria, Virginia, who used his lunch hours to whittle from wood an alternative to the link and pin coupler. Diagram of the top view of Janneys coupler design as published in his patent application in 1873. ...
A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a patentee for a fixed period of time in exchange for a disclosure of an invention. ...
1873 (MDCCCLXXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...
This article is in need of attention. ...
Location in Virginia Coordinates: Country United States State Virginia Founded 1718 Government - Mayor William D. Euille Area - City 15. ...
In 1893, satisfied that an automatic coupler could meet the demands of commercial railroad operations and, at the same time, be manipulated safely, the United States Congress passed the Safety Appliance Act. Its success in promoting switchyard safety was stunning. Between 1877 and 1887, approximately 38% of all railworker accidents involved coupling. That percentage fell as the railroads began to replace link and pin couplers with automatic couplers. By 1902, only two years after the SAA's effective date, coupling accidents constituted only 4% of all employee accidents. In absolute numbers, coupler-related accidents dropped from nearly 11,000 in 1892 to just over 2,000 in 1902, even though the number of railroad employees steadily increased during that decade. Year 1893 (MDCCCXCIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ...
Type Bicameral Houses Senate House of Representatives United States Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D since January 4, 2007 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D since January 4, 2007 Members 535 plus 4 Delegates and 1 Resident Commissioner Political groups (as of November 7, 2006 elections) Democratic Party Republican...
Modern US boxcar showing automatic coupler, air brake hose and grab bars, all mandated by the Safety Appliance Act The Safety Appliance Act made air brakes and automatic couplers mandatory on all US trains. ...
1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...
1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...
When the Janney coupling was chosen to be the American standard, there were an amazing 8000 patented alternatives to choose from.
The only significant defect of the AAR (Janney) design is that sometimes the drawheads need to be manually aligned.
Changes since 1873 The AAR coupler, originally called the Janney coupling, has stood the test of time since its invention, and has seen only minor changes: - It is clear that the original Janney coupler is no longer compatible with the latest AAR couplers. A visual comparison between the original Janney contour and the current AAR contour (see the illustration of the "Diagram of the top view of Janney's coupler..." and the photograph of the "Knuckle couplers in use" elsewhere in this article) would strongly indicate that the original Janney contour and the current AAR contour (especially that of the knuckle itself) are no longer compatible. The current AAR contour dates back to the "Master Car Builders Association (MCBA)" coupler.
- Buckeye coupler, a side operated version of the MCBA coupler [3]
- Type "E" coupler, the original (plain) AAR coupler, derived from the Master Car Builders Association coupler.
- Type "F" coupler, a "Tooth and socket" variation to prevent accidents, derailments and wrecks from uncoupling the couplers. The "tooth" on a loose coupler could puncture any tank car or other car carrying hazardous materials. Variations on the AAR type "F" coupler have been devised to provide extra protection, in case of derailments and train wrecks, to cars routinely carrying sensitive or hazardous loads. These variations of type "F" couplers, generally involving "shelves", remain fully compatible with standard AAR couplers, but tend to keep derailments and collisions from uncoupling the cars (thereby preventing the "tooth" of the couplers from piercing the ends of the cars).
- The APTA (former AAR) standard type "H" coupler, a "Tooth and socket" variation used mostly, if not exclusively, on passenger cars. Types "F" and "H" couplers are also known as tightlock couplings. The Type "H" coupler is now under the supervision of the APTA (American Public Transportation Association)
- "pads" to reduce slack on passenger trains.
- improvement to castings, etc. to increase maximum trailing load.
- rotating-shaft couplers (type "F") introduced for use in rotary car dumpers such as on the Pilbara railways.
- narrow gauge railways such as the Victorian Puffing Billy Railway use a miniature version of the AAR coupler.
A modern tank car, owned by the Union Tank Car Company, passes westbound through Rochelle Railroad Park, Rochelle, Illinois on May 29, 2005. ...
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The American Public Transportation Association is a Washington, DC based non-profit organization that serves as an advocate for the advancement of public transportation programs and initiatives in the United States since the organizations founding in 1882. ...
A rotary car dumper is a mechanism used for unloading certain railroad cars such as hopper cars or gondolas. ...
The Pilbara is one of the nine regions of Western Australia. ...
Capital Melbourne Government Constitutional monarchy Governor David de Kretser Premier Steve Bracks (ALP) Federal representation - House seats 37 - Senate seats 12 Gross State Product (2004-05) - Product ($m) $222,022 (2nd) - Product per capita $44,443/person (5th) Population (End of September 2006) - Population 5,110,500 (2nd) - Density 22. ...
Puffing Billy is a narrow gauge (26) steam railway in the Dandenong Ranges near Melbourne, Australia. ...
Fully automatic couplings Fully automatic couplings are those which make all connections between the rail vehicles (mechanical, air brake and electrical) without human intervention, in contrast to autocouplers which just handle the mechanical aspects. The majority of trains fitted with these types of couplers are multiple units, especially those used in mass transit operations. In the United States of America, transit describes local area common carrier passenger transportation configured to provide scheduled service on fixed routes on a non-reservation basis. ...
There are a few designs of fully automatic couplers in use worldwide, including the Scharfenberg coupler, various knuckle hybrids (such as the Tightlock, used in the UK), the wedgelock coupling, Dellner couplings (similar to Scharfenberg couplers in appearance), and the BSI coupling.
Older US transit operators use non-Janney electro-pneumatic coupler designs that have been in service for decades.
Dellner manufactured Scharfenberg) Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 862 KB) A closeup of the coupling on Northern Rail Class 333 EMU 333011, photographed when it was between services at Leeds City railway station. ...
| Scharfenberg® Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1036x628, 239 KB) Summary Licensing File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Coupling (railway) Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner...
| BSI Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 962 KB) A closeup of the coupling on Northern Rail Class 144 DMU railbus 144023. ...
| APTA, Type "H", Tightlock coupling Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 868 KB) A closeup of the coupling on Northern Rail Class 321 EMU 321901, photographed between services at Leeds City railway station. ...
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| Wedgelock Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 896 KB) A London Underground 1996 tube stock train on the Jubilee Line at Sratford station in London on 24 October 2005. ...
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Scharfenberg coupler The Scharfenberg coupler (German: Scharfenbergkupplung or Schaku) is probably the most commonly used type of fully automatic couplings. Designed in 1903 by Karl Scharfenberg in Königsberg, Germany (today Kaliningrad, Russia), it has gradually spread from transit trains to regular passenger service trains, although, outside of Europe, its use is generally restricted to mass transit systems. The Schaku coupler is superior in many ways to the AAR (Janney/Knuckle) coupler because it makes the electrical and also the pneumatic connections and disconnections automatic. However there is no standard for the placement of these electro-pneumatic connections. Some rail companies have them placed on the sides while others have them placed above the mechanical portion of the Schaku coupler. The main disadvantage to the Scharfenberg coupler is its low maximum tonnage, which makes it totally unsuitable for freight operations. Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 2398 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...
Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 2398 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...
Kaliningrad (Russian: ; Lithuanian: KaraliauÄius; German , Polish: Królewiec; briefly Russified as Kyonigsberg), is a seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast, the Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea. ...
Small air cylinders, acting on the rotating heads of the coupler, ensure the Schaku coupler engagement, making it unnecessary to use shock to get a good coupling. Joining portions of a passenger train can be done at very low speed (less than 2 mph/3.2 km/h in the final approach), so that the passengers are not jostled about. Rail equipment manufacturers such as Bombardier offer the Schaku coupler as an option on their mass transit systems and their passenger cars and locomotives. In North America all the trains of the Montreal Metro are equipped with it, as are new light rail systems in Denver, Baltimore and New Jersey. It is also used on light rail vehicles in Portland, Minneapolis, the Vancouver Skytrain, and the Scarborough RT in Toronto. Miles per hour is a unit of speed, expressing the number of international miles covered per hour. ...
Kilometres per hour (American spelling: kilometers per hour) is a unit of both speed (scalar) and velocity (vector). ...
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TheRide is a transit system in the Denver, Colorado metropolitan area. ...
Light rail at BWI station The Baltimore Light Rail is a small light rail network serving Baltimore, Maryland and the surrounding suburbs. ...
The New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJ Transit) is a statewide public transportation system serving the state of New Jersey, and Orange and Rockland counties in New York. ...
This article is about light rail systems in general. ...
Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) is a light rail system in the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon. ...
The Hiawatha Line is a 12-mile (19-kilometer) light-rail corridor in Hennepin County, Minnesota that extends from downtown Minneapolis to the southern suburb of Bloomington, connecting to the Minneapolis-St. ...
The SkyTrain is a two-line urban mass transit system operating in Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. ...
The Scarborough RT (sometimes shortened to SRT or RT) is a public transport metro line in the Scarborough district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ...
Dual couplings and match wagons If a wagon with one coupling system needs to be coupled to wagons with another coupling type there are four solutions. This may be needed when taking metro rolling stock from its manufacturer to the city where it is to be used: - hope that dual fitment of the couplings is possible.
- use a match wagon(s) which have different couplings at either end.
- use a coupling adaptor.
- for emergency use only, use a rope. Also useful if a coupler is damaged or broken off.
Only some kinds of couplings coexist on the end of a wagon at the same time, because amongst other reasons they need to be at the same height. For example, in the Australian state of Victoria, engines had the AAR (Janney) coupler, with buffers, and the chain mounted on a lug cast into the AAR (Janney) coupler. Capital Melbourne Government Constitutional monarchy Governor David de Kretser Premier Steve Bracks (ALP) Federal representation - House seats 37 - Senate seats 12 Gross State Product (2004-05) - Product ($m) $222,022 (2nd) - Product per capita $44,443/person (5th) Population (End of September 2006) - Population 5,110,500 (2nd) - Density 22. ...
A match wagon or match truck (also known as a barrier vehicle / wagon in Britain) has different kinds of couplings at each end. If a pair of match wagons is used, a rake of wagons using coupling A can be inserted into a train otherwise using coupling B.
A coupling adaptor might couple to an AAR (Janney) coupling on a wagon, and present, for example, a meatchopper coupler to the next wagon. Such an adaptor might weigh 100 kg.
Sets of carriages Automatic couplers like the Janney are safer in a collision because they help prevent the carriages telescoping. British Rail therefore decided to adopt a Janney variant for its passenger carriages, with the coupler able to swing out of the way for coupling to engines with the traditional buffer and chain system.
In New South Wales, sets of carriages were permanently coupled with a fixed bar, since the carriages were only ever disconnected at the workshops. Freight cars are sometimes coupled in pairs or triplets, using bar couplings in between.
Articulated sets of carriages or wagons share the intermediate bogies, and have no need for couplings in the intermediate positions.
Coupler conversion From time to time, a railway decides that it needs to upgrade its coupling system from one that is proving unsatisfactory, to another that meets future requirements. This can be done gradually, which can create lots of problems with transitional incompatibilities, or overnight, which requires a lot of planning.
Japan Japan converted its British-derived buffer and chain couplings to the American Janney coupling over a period of a few days in the early 1920s, after considerable preparation. Today, most (if not all) EMUs including high-speed Shinkansen trains, and some DMUs use the Shaku-Thomlinson type coupling system, while locomotive-hauled trains still use the Janney coupling system. A multiple unit is a passenger train whose carriages have their own motors, either diesel (DMUs) or electric (EMUs), and do not need to be hauled by a locomotive. ...
300 (left) and 700 Series Shinkansen at Tokyo Station Shinkansen 500 Series at Kyoto Station, March 2005 The Shinkansen ) is a network of high-speed railway lines in Japan operated by Japan Railways. ...
DMU, type SA108 of Great Poland Voivodship in Poznań, Poland German DMU of class 628 A diesel multiple unit (DMU) is a train whose carriages have their own motors powered by a diesel engine. ...
Australia Australia, with its break of gauge, has always had different couplers on different systems, and has generally adopted gradual conversion. Conversion to the Janney coupling is now virtually complete.
Europe While Europe has chosen an automatic coupler compatible with the Soviet one, except for some trial installation, no action has been taken to implement the conversion, due to cost. In many heavy-haul applications, such as coal and iron ore, either US AAR-type couplers or Soviet SA-3 couplers are used.
America Once Congress passed a law mandating conversion from the link and pin coupler to the Janney coupler, railroads in the United States had only a few years to implement the change. The railroads in North America form one unitary system, and uniformity of couplers is important for smooth interchange of rolling stock.
Latin America Railways in Central and South America are fragmented by gauge, geography, and financial and technical heritage. While some systems have adopted the American Janney coupler, others retain the British buffer and hook (buffer and chain) coupler (see above).
Soviet Union Russia and Central Asia used buffer and chain couplings, albeit with possibly wider centres for the buffers, until conversion to automatic SA-3 couplers. The SA-3 coupler was invented in 1932. Some wagons were equipped with SA-3 couplers since 1930-s (they could be coupled with chain coupling), but all cars have recieved automatical couplers only in the 1960s and 1970s. See also: Intermat/Willison coupler, Animation showing SA3 coupling (site only in Russian)
Middle East While the middle east is mostly standard gauge, three different couplings appear to be in use (not counting Sharfenberg couplings on EMU trains). These are buffer and chain, American and Russian types. The proposed UAR standard appears to be the American type.
Africa South of the Sahara, American Janney, and chopper couplings (not necessarily of compatible types) appear to account for most couplings. The preferred UAR standard is again the American Janney coupling.
Brake couplings -
Just as railway couplings allow a train of wagons to be reordered, couplings are needed for any continuous braking systems. Brakes are used on railway trains to bring the train to a standstill. ...
Electronically Controlled Brakes Electronically Controlled Brakes (ECB) need a method of connecting electrically adjacent wagons, and this can be done by plugs and sockets, or by very short range radio signals.
Models On model railroads, couplers vary according to scale, and have evolved over many years. Early model trains were coupled using various hook-and-loop arrangements, which were frequently asymmetrical, requiring all cars to be pointing in the same direction. In the larger scales, working scale or near-scale models of Janney couplers were quite common, but proved impractical in HO and smaller scales. This article needs cleanup. ...
For many years, the "X2F" or "Horn-Hook" coupler was quite common in HO scale, as it could be produced as a single piece of moulded plastic. Similarly, for many years, a "lift-hook" coupler developed by Arnold, a German manufacturer of N-scale model trains, was commonly used in that scale. U.S. Prototype model of an HO scale (1:87) center cab switcher made by Bachmann. ...
U.S. Prototype model of an N scale (1:160) Chesapeake and Ohio Railway 2-6-6-2 shown with a pencil for size N scale (or sometimes N gauge) is a popular model railway size, allowing hobbyists to build layouts that take up less space than HO scale, or...
The chief competitor of both these couplers, more popular among serious modellers, was the Magne-Matic, a magnetically-released knuckle coupler developed by Keith and Dale Edwards, and manufactured by Kadee, a company they started. While they closely resemble miniature Janney couplers, they are somewhat different mechanically, with the knuckle pivoting from the center of the coupler head, rather than from the side. A steel pin, designed to resemble an air brake hose, allows the couplers to be released magnetically; the design of the coupler head prevents this from happening unless the train is stopped or reversed with a mated pair of couplers directly over an uncoupling magnet. Once the Kadee patents ran out, a number of other manufacturers began to manufacture similar (and compatible) couplers. Kadee Quality Products Co. ...
Recently, an exact-scale HO model of the AAR coupler has been designed and manufactured by Frank Sergent, of Sergent Engineering. This design uses a tiny stainless steel ball to lock the knuckle closed. Uncoupling is achieved by holding a magnetic wand over the coupler pair to draw the balls out of the locking pockets.
In British 00 scale (equivalent of H0 scale) models a type of coupler called the 'tension lock' is used as standard. This is similar in operation to the meatchopper type of coupling. While it works well, it is often seen as ugly and obtrusive (although smaller designs are available, these are not always fully compatible with other models) and many British modellers prefer to retrofit either Kadee types or working hook and chain couplings.
See also External Links: - Governor Announces $3 Million for Buckeye Steel (August 27, 2001) - Buckeye Steel files for Ch. ...
To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
Nickname: Location in Massachusetts, USA Coordinates: , Country United States State Massachusetts County Suffolk County Settled 1630 Incorporated (city) 1822 Government - Governor Deval Patrick (D) Area - City 89. ...
Sources Image File history File links Commons-logo. ...
The Wikimedia Commons (also called Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ...
The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C., (large image) The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States...
Clarence Thomas (born June 23, 1948) is an American jurist and has been an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1991. ...
External links
Models - Kadee Quality Products Company
- Sergent Engineering
- Trolleyville School, OPERATIONAL HO SCALE TRACTION COUPLERS
- Drawing of a Van Dorn coupler
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