Buchli drive
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The Buchli-drive (named after its inventor, Swiss engineer Jakob Buchli[Deutsch]) is a drive for electric locomotives.
The Buchli-drive is a fully-spring loaded drive, in which each floating axle has an individual motor, that is placed in the spring mounted locomotive frame. The weight of the driving motors is completely disconnected from the driving wheels, which are exposed to movement of the rails.
Although the drive was very successful in the thirties, it is no longer used. It was replaced with smaller, simpler drives, that exhibit less imbalance and allow higher speeds.
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[edit] Construction
The gear wheel is securely located in the locomotive box. The connection to the springless driving wheel is enabled by two coupling rods and two geared levers. The driving wheel can move in a vertical direction with respect to the gear wheel , due to the internal mechanism.
The taps in the driving wheel and the ends of the tooth-swing are mounted spherically so that the coupling rods can lean to the wheel-plain. Thus the wheelset can move opposite the locomotive box on one side.
[edit] Standard design
The Buchli-drive was exported as one-sided separate motor-drive mostly with interior frameworks .
The engine framework with the wheelset bearing is between the wheel disks of the driving wheels. The gear wheel, which is housed in an auxiliary framework outside the driving wheels and is surrounded by a protective casing, is on one side of the driving wheels. Each gear wheel is driven by an individual motor, which is above the gear wheel in the locomotive box.
With this implementation, a strongly one-sided weight distribution occurs in the undercarriage through the remote gear wheels. In order to maintain stability of the locomotive on the longitudinal axis , heavy appliances must be arranged in the machine room on the opposite side of the drives.
The locomotives have the typical asymmetrical appearance of the Buchli-drive: On one side, the wheel star of the drive wheels are visible, on the other side, they are covered by the wheel cover box of the gear wheels almost completely.
[edit] Other designs
In addition to the above-named normal implementation, there were also the following variations:
[edit] Design with outside frame
The engine framework with the driving wheel housing is outside the wheel disks of the driving wheels. The driving wheel is enclosed by a quill camped in the locomotive cabinet, on which the gear wheel sits.
Examples: Pennsylvania Railroad O1B, DRG ET11.01,
[edit] Design of group drive
The motor is arranged between the floating axles. A common pinion or a pinion on both engine wave ends drives the gear wheels of the neighbouring axes.
U.S. Patent 1,683,674. Implemented vehicles are not known.
[edit] Design with bilateral drive
The driving wheel is coupled with two gear wheels. The motor has a pinion on both sides. The taps in the wheel disk are warped about 90 degrees against each other so that the drive imbalance can be reduced.
For greater driving power the bilateral version was used . With this arrangement, however, there is the danger of mechanical stress in the drive components. About these of the driving engine waves distant, to hold, was molted the pinions executed.
Examples: French express train locomotives: SNCF 2D2 5400, SNCF 2D2 5500, SNCF 2D2 9100
[edit] Design with two motors per axis
Two driving motors work on one common gear wheel, which is interconnected with a driving wheel.
Examples: Pennsylvania Railroad O1B
[edit] Probation
The Buchli-drive made possible the construction of powerful, fast locomotives with separated drive-motors 1920s. The possible variations also allowed the mounting of big motors, that didn't claim the tracks unduly thanks to the full sprung opposite the wheel-coherent also at fast trip, however.
The many movable parts, which demanded expensive lubrication and careful maintenance, were disadvantageous. The Buchli-drive therefore became generally accepted only on high performance express train locomotives where there were no alternatives.
Nearly 240 locomotives of the SBB with Buchli-drive were in use for over sixty years. The Ae 3/6I were in operation from 1921 to 1994. French tracks had 100 express train locomotives in the use for fifty years.
The Buchli-drive is no longer in use. Today, smaller fast current driving motors stand by the disposal, which easier drives make possible. Furthermore, the imbalance caused by the drive components became too sever with speeds over 140 km per hour.
[edit] Locomotive with Buchli-drive
- Deutsche Reichsbahn
- E 16 (116)(Deutsch)
- ET 11.01 double railcars Bo'2'+2'Bo', year of construction 1938, implementation with out frame
the vehicle was rebuilt in the sixties and the Buchli-drive removed
- Japanese Government Railways
- 7000 - (1A)Bo(A1), year of construction 1926, It is renamed as ED54 (日本語)
- Indian Railways
- EC/1 4002 - 2'Co2' - year of construction 1927..
- RENFE
- RENFE series 272, from the predecessor company NORTE of ordered locomotives, 12 Stk 2'Co'Co'2' for 1,5 kV, year of construction 1928..
- Paulista-Railway, Brazil
320, 1'Do1', year of construction 1932 picture. .
- Czechoslovak State Railways
- E 465.0 - 2 Stk 1'Do1' locomotive for 1,5 kV, year of construction 1927, discards 1962
- Pennsylvania Railroad
- Pennsylvania Railroad O1B - 2 Stk 2'Bo2' locomotives, implementation with interior frameworks and two driving motors per axis,..
- Circumvesuviana, Italy
- 1'Do1' locomotive, type and number unknown,
[edit] See also
[edit] Literature
- Gustav Nagel: Hierzulande ein Exot. Der Buchli-Antrieb. In: LOK MAGAZIN. Nr. 253/Jahrgang 41/2002. GeraNova Zeitschriftenverlag GmbH München, ISSN 0458-1822, S. 64-65.
- Werner Nef: Buchli-Oldtimer der Schweiz, 2003, ISBN 3-765-47125-9
- Karl Sachs: Elektrische Treibfahrzeuge, 1953, Band I, S. 298-301
[edit] Patent
- U.S. Patent 1,298,881
- German Patent 304997
