Rail Joint Welding Alignment Using Transverse Clamping Slides
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current mobile welding units can only compensate for rail material consumption through longitudinal shifts, limiting their use when replacing old rail sections or inserting new ones, especially at non-neutral temperatures.
Innovation Solution
An integrated welding machine device with transverse slide and cross-slide mechanisms, including hydraulic cylinders and locking devices, allows for precise alignment and fixation of rail ends, enabling welding without material addition and facilitating efficient alignment and welding of rail ends, even at non-neutral temperatures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If mobile welding units are used to weld rail ends without adding foreign materials, then welding quality is improved, but the ability to compensate for rail material consumption through longitudinal shifts is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the functions of the welding unit, rail clamping devices, pressure rods, and cross-slide devices into a single integrated mobile welding unit. This merging allows the system to perform both high-quality flash welding and longitudinal position adjustment without requiring separate equipment, thus maintaining welding quality while regaining adaptability for material consumption compensation.
Solution Approach 2:
The mobile welding unit is designed with multi-functional capabilities: it can perform flash welding, clamp rails, apply longitudinal pressure, and adjust rail positions via cross-slide devices. This universality enables the single unit to handle both welding operations and material consumption compensation, resolving the contradiction between welding quality and adaptability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If rail ends are pressed apart by additional devices at higher temperatures, then welding is enabled, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pressure rods and rail clamping devices are integrated into the welding unit itself rather than being separate additional devices. The pressure rods can be extended or repositioned within the same unit to press rail ends apart when needed, eliminating the need for separate pressing devices and reducing overall system complexity while maintaining temperature adaptability.
3Manufacturing precision
If welding units are used after aligning rail ends separately, then welding precision is improved, but time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The rail clamping devices and pressure rods are pre-positioned and integrated within the mobile welding unit. Before the welding operation begins, these components can quickly align the rail ends longitudinally and laterally using hydraulic or mechanical actuation, eliminating the need for separate preliminary alignment operations and reducing total process time while maintaining precision.
Solution Approach 2:
Alignment functions are merged into the welding unit itself. The cross-slide devices and pressure rods work in conjunction with the welding electrodes to perform both alignment and welding in a single integrated operation, rather than as separate steps, thereby reducing time and cost while preserving alignment precision.
4Loss of substance
If thermal and white welding methods are used with printing and pulling devices, then material consumption is compensated, but the process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile welding unit integrates the functions of thermal welding, white welding, and material consumption compensation into a single system. The pressure rods and cross-slide devices work together with the welding electrodes to perform all these functions simultaneously or in sequence without requiring separate printing and pulling devices, thus compensating for material consumption while simplifying the overall process.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution reduces material consumption, saves time and costs by allowing welding without additional material, and enables precise alignment and stable fixation of rail ends, enhancing the efficiency and reliability of the welding process across varying temperatures.
Implementation Method 1
Each pressure rod (7) is assigned a first hydraulic cylinder (8) to press the two rail ends apart until no overlap (9) is no longer available.
Implementation Method 2
The cross -slide device includes a hydraulic cylinder to apply a cross -move force. The hydraulic cylinder ensures a long service life in work and precise accuracy in order to align the two rail ends precisely.
Implementation Method 3
Mobile welding units are increasingly being used when two rails of a track are welded. In contrast to the older thermal and white, the merging of the rail ends without adding foreign materials.
Data Source
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AI summary
Disclosed is an apparatus (1) for welding a rail joint (2) of a track (3), comprising two rail clamping mechanisms (5) which are spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction (4) of the rail and are connected to one another by push rods (7) in order to press rail ends (6) apart prior to a welding operation. According to the invention, at least one rail clamping mechanism (5) is coupled to a transverse moving device (14) in order to make the rail ends (6) flush with each other once they have been pressed apart.