Rotatable Railway Signal Mounting Arrangement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current mounting arrangements for railway signal heads on posts are inefficient for maintenance, requiring labor-intensive realignment and posing risks due to the need for ladder access and potential for the signal head to slip off during tilting, leading to inaccuracies and increased costs.
Innovation Solution
A mounting arrangement with a fixed attachment member and a rotatable member that allows secure rotation and accurate return to the original position, eliminating the need for re-alignment and reducing the risk of the signal head slipping off, while providing better access for maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the signal head is mounted well above the ground on a fixed post, then the signal provides stable and accurate alignment, but maintenance requires ladder access which poses safety risks and increases complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The post is designed to be tiltable about a horizontal axis, allowing it to shift between an upright position (for stable signal alignment) and a tilted position (for maintenance access). This dynamic transformation enables the same structure to serve two conflicting purposes: maintaining reliable signal alignment during operation and providing safe maintenance access when needed.
2Ease of operation
If the post is made tiltable to improve maintenance access, then safety risks are reduced, but the signal head may inadvertently slip off and alignment accuracy is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting arrangement is divided into separate components: a tiltable post, a signal head mounting bracket, and a securing mechanism. This segmentation allows the post to tilt for maintenance access while the bracket and securing mechanism ensure the signal head remains firmly attached and maintains accurate alignment when the post is in the upright position.
Solution Approach 2:
A securing mechanism (such as a latch or locking device) is provided to prevent the signal head from slipping off the post during tilting or due to vibration. This preliminary protective measure counteracts the potential harmful effect of the tiltable design before it can cause alignment loss or component detachment.
3Ease of operation
If the signal head is rotated during maintenance, then access to all parts is improved, but accurate return to original position requires time-consuming realignment procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting bracket is designed with pre-established alignment features (such as keyed positions, indexed slots, or self-centering mechanisms) that automatically guide the signal head back to its correct alignment position after rotation during maintenance. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for time-consuming realignment procedures by ensuring accurate return is built into the mechanism itself.
Data Source
AI summary
A mounting arrangement 10 for mounting a utility 26 to an end 16 of a post 17. The mounting arrangement 10 includes an attachment member 11 for attachment to the post 17 fixed against rotation when attached to the post 17. A rotatable member 12 is connected to the attachment member 11 and is rotatable relative to the attachment member 11 about the axis of the post 17. The rotatable member 12 includes a connection arrangement 13 for connecting a utility 26 to the rotatable member 12, so that the utility 26 can rotate with the rotatable member 12. The rotatable member 12 is rotatable between first and second positions. A cooperating arrangement comprising at least one abutment 35, 37, 38, 42 is provided for cooperation with the rotatable member 12 to facilitate accurate return of the rotatable member 12 from the second position to the first position.