The invention relates to a tamping assembly for tamping sleepers of a track, including a tamping unit having oppositely positioned tamping tools mounted on a vertically adjustable tool carrier, the tamping tools being coupled in each case via a squeezing drive to a vibration drive, wherein each tamping tool comprises a pivot lever rotatable about a pivot axis and at least one tamping tool mount for accommodating at least one tamping tine. In this, a first squeezing drive is coupled directly to the vibration drive and articulatedly connected to a first pivot lever, and a second squeezing drive is coupled to the vibration drive via a separate coupling unit and articulatedly connected to a link, mounted on the tool carrier, as well as to a second pivot lever. In this manner, the tamping unit can be configured in a very compact way with squeezing drives being arranged one below the other, wherein forces and momentums occurring during operation can be easily controlled.

The invention relates to a tamping tine for a tamping machine for tamping a track, including a tine shaft which has at its upper end a retaining portion for fastening in a tine mount and which merges at its lower end into a tine plate. In this, a sensitive element of a sensor is arranged in a recess of the tine shaft, and the tamping tine includes a coupling element for transmission of a sensor signal. In this manner, the tamping tine fulfils a sensor function for recording measuring values occurring in the tamping tine.

The present disclosure generally relates to an improved tamping operation where a rail tamping machine advances at different speeds during different stages of tamping and workhead assembly operation. The workhead assembly is also capable of moving longitudinally relative to the rail tamping machine frame when it is detected that the rail tamping machine is at an appropriate distance from a reference point. Related methods of tamping are also described.

A tamping unit for tamping sleepers of a track includes a tool carrier supported in a lowerable manner on an assembly frame, on which two pivot levers with tamping tools are mounted so as to be squeezable toward one another and, while being actuatable with a vibration, are rotatable about a respective rotation axis. A sensor for recording a pivot angle of a pivoting motion about the related rotation axis is associated with at least one pivot lever. The sensor has a multipart configuration with a first sensor part fastened to the tool carrier and a second sensor part fastened to the pivot lever. In this manner, sensitive sensor components in the first sensor part are subjected to lessened stress since the tool carrier merely performs a lowering or lifting motion during a tamping operation. A method for operating the tamping unit is also provided.

A tamper tool is provided for use in adjusting railroad ballast and constructed and arranged for use with a tamper tool holder attached to a railroad tamping machine. Included on the tool is a shaft with a first portion, a second portion, and a central portion disposed between the first and second portions, and a front surface, a rear surface, and two side surfaces. The first portion has through bores extending from the front surface to the rear surface, and the central portion has a first cross-section at an upper end, a second cross-section at a lower end. An area of the first cross-section is greater than an area of the second cross-section, and the shaft tapers between the first cross-section and the second cross-section. A paddle for tamping is attached at a free end of the second portion.

A method for determining the longitudinal forces in track rails includes shifting a rail section of at least one of the track rails from an initial arrangement into a test arrangement by providing a test force, recording at least one force measurement value correlating with the test force in the test arrangement, and determining the longitudinal forces in the at least one track rail on the basis of the at least one force measurement value. At least one sleeper is attached to the rail section when the at least one force measurement value is recorded. A device for carrying out the method is also provided.

A tamping assembly for tamping sleepers of a track has a tamping unit with tamping tools. The tamping tools are located opposite one another, are mounted on a height-adjustable tool support, and, by way of drives, can be caused to vibrate and can be fed relative to each other. Each tamping tool includes a pivot lever, which can be rotated about a feed axis, and an inner and an outer tamping pick retainer. Each tamping pick retainer can be laterally pivoted relative to the pivot lever. The outer tamping pick retainer can be pivoted about a first pivot axis and the inner tamping pick retainer can be pivoted about a second pivot axis. The second pivot axis is arranged at an offset to the first pivot axis. Thus, it is no longer necessary to adjacently arrange elements for pivoting the tamping pick retainers.

The system includes a track lining apparatus and two tamping apparatuses arranged in parallel, wherein the track lining apparatus includes two track lining hydro-cylinders, and the track lining hydro-cylinder communicates with a hydraulic control system through an oil inlet pipeline and an oil return pipeline; pressure sensors configured to detect pressures of the pipelines are provided on the oil inlet pipeline and the oil return pipeline; the tamping apparatus includes two pairs of tamping components arranged on both sides, where the tamping component includes a pair of packer arms and two pairs of packers; a dynamic force sensor is provided at a joint between the packer arm and the packer, and the dynamic force sensor can detect a transient dynamic downward insertion force generated when the packer is inserted into the ballast bed.

A tamping machine has a tamping unit for simultaneously tamping sleepers of a track that are positioned directly behind one another. Tamping unit segments are arranged one behind the other. Each tamping unit segment has a height-adjustable tamping tool carrier on which opposing tamping tools are mounted that are coupled to a vibration drive via squeezing cylinders. The respective vibration drive has an eccentric shaft with first and second eccentric discs, the axes of symmetry of which, together with a common axis of rotation, span two eccentric planes that enclose a relative angle to one another. A first squeezing cylinder is mounted on the first eccentric disc. An opposing second squeezing cylinder is mounted on the second eccentric disc. Cylinder axes of the opposing squeezing cylinders enclose a position angle which is approximated to the relative angle of the eccentric planes.

A railway works machine comprises a machine chassis and a works shuttle, the machine chassis having two opposite longitudinal end portions and a middle portion connecting the opposite longitudinal end portions, a volume being created underneath the middle portion of the machine chassis to house at least part of the works shuttle. The shuttle chassis is able to move with respect to the machine chassis back and forth between two end-of-travel positions. A longitudinal locking system allows the machine chassis to be secured to the shuttle chassis in a position for travel. The longitudinal locking system comprises a first locking device locking together a first of the two longitudinal end portions and the shuttle chassis and a second locking device locking together the shuttle chassis and a second of the two longitudinal end portions.