Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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RAILWAY CAR
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SPECIFICATION
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a self-propelled
railway car and, more particularly, to a vehicle, specifical-
ly a track-borne vehicle which can be utilized for elevated,
surface and subway rail lines and which comprises a vehicle
chassis or frame, one or more drive or propulsion motors, a
cooling system for the propulsion motors and a prime mover
~i.e. a diesel-electric or diesel-hydraulic engine) for
operating the propulsion motors.
Background of the Invention
It is known to provide, for railway purposes, a prime
mover on a vehicle chassis or frame which is carried, in turn,
by wheel trucks on a pair of rails. The trucks have electric
or hydraulic propulsion motors which are driven, in turn, with
power generated by a diesel-electric engine or a diesel-hydrau-
lic prime mover.
In the first case, the shaft of the diesel engine is
connected to an electric generator which energizes the wheel
motors.
In the second case, the wheel motors are hydraulic
motors and are energized by hydraulic fluid delivered by a
pump which, in turn, is driven by the diesel engine.
In German patent 1,455,141, for example, the vehicle
frame is provided with a plate upon which the other units are
seated and which also carries a cabin or the like for the opera-
tor of the vehicle. Reference can also be had to German patent
J l'~)g~3
document (open application) 2,603,326, U.S~ patents 2,638,056
and 3,021,797.
The floor plate is welded to the vehicle frame and
stands on a stiffened platform capable of wlthstandlng shock
and other forces transmitted to it by the truck suspensions or
the llke.
However, since the attachment of these floor plates
to the frame generally requires long weld seams, the system is
sensitive to rupture of these seams.
Furthermore, the mounting of the various units upon
the plate is time-consuming and the resulting system ls not
easily maintained or repaired. Difficulties are encountered
when entire units must be replaced.
Objects of the Invention
It is the principal object of the present invention
to provide an improved vehicle construction whereby the disad-
vantages of earlier systems are obviated.
Another object of this invention is to provide an im-
proved self-propelled railway vehicle which facilitates main-
tenance and repair and which avoids the drawbacks of the ear-
lier assembly for this purpose with respect to the mounting of
the various components on the vehicle frame.
Still another object of this invention is to provide
an improved railway car which does not suffer from deteriora-
tion because of long weld seams and the like.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide
a relatively inexpensive and simple railway car construction.
Summary of the Invention
These objects and others which will become more rea-
dily apparent hereinafter are attained, in accordance with the
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present invention, in a self-propelled vehicle for a railroad~
in which the propulsion-motor cooling device, the propulsion-
-control system, the propulsion motor and the cab, to the ex-
tent that they lie above the vehicle frame, and even the gene-
rator or the hydraulic motive energy source, are provided in
the form of laterally accessible individual units, each having
a bottom plate which can be set upon and connected to the ve-
hicle frame, the latter forming an upwardly open frame con-
struction with longitudinal and transverse beams upon which
the bottom plate of the respective units can be detachably
mounted.
This arrangement enables a selective mounting and
replacement of the units upon the open vehicle frame, a single
frame-covering plate or floor plate upon which all the units
rest being eliminated in the system of the invention. Each
of the units is individually accessible and including the re-
spective bottom plate, is self-contained.
The selective mounting of the various components per-
mits, for example, the cab for the vehicle operator to be
~ocated midway of the ends of the frame or somewhat to one
side or the other of a transverse center beam, or at either of
the ends. Of course, two cabs may be provided, one at each
end. The cabs may be narrow or wide and can be replaced,
should the purpose of the vehicle change with time.
When the vehicle is a diesel-electric engine, on one
hand the diesel engine and generating unit, and on the other
hand the cooling unit can be disposed adjacent to a centrally
located cab or housing.
When two end cabs are provided, the diesel engine and
generating unit, the cooling unit and the control unit will be
provided in this order between the two cabs.
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The vehicle can form a rigid-frame or a pivotal-frame
locomotive.
It has been found that the open-frame construction
previously described and forming an important aspect of the
invention has the advantage of high elasticity and freedom from
tear-sensitive welding seams which permit distortion up to the
elastic limit. In addition, of course, mounting of the various
parts is simplified.
According to a feature of the invention, the vehicle
frame is provided on both ends with front plates, and the bot-
tom plates of the units are provided in modular widths for
mounting upon the frame, the modular width corresponding to the
length of the front plate.
It has been found to be advantageous, moreover, to
provide elastomer or rubber layers between the units to be
mounted upon the frame and surfaces of the latter which need
not be completely finished.
The bottom plates of the unit are provided with yoke
plates which can be drawn against these bottom plates by screws
or bolts to press them against the rubber layers, the bottom
plates preferably being spaced apart by respective gaps.
The transverse beams have their upper surfaces set
below the upper surfaces of the longitudinal beams so that chan-
nels are formed in the longitudinal beams for the control,electri-
cal and fluid feed lines which canbe setinto these channels.
In a diesel engine system in which the diesel engine
is connected to the generator, a common cooling-air duct is
formed in the longitudinal direction within the vehicle frame
between the upper sides of a longitudinal beam and the upper
sides of a transverse beam, this cooling passage being connected
by bellows with the propulsion motors and by upwardly extending
fittings with the cooling unit and the control unit. The va-
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rious ducts and passages are interconnected by lowering the
units onto the frame.
The cooling passage can also be used to separate the
high-current lines from the control and air lines so that the
respective high current and control or compressed air lines
lie on respective sides of the air passage.
The cooling unit forms an air-cooling assembly which
can surround the engine core oE the diesel engine and can form
a separate unit.
According to yet another feature of the invention,
the motor cooler and the ccoling assembly are disposed directly
adjacent to one another preferably in a transverse plane of the
vessel and possibly even as a single unit. The air inlet open-
ing for the motor cooler and the cooling air unit are provided
on opposite sides while a diagonally-extending partition wall
is provided between the air cooling assembly and the engine
cooler, this partition extending in the direction of movement
of the vehicle.
The invention also provides that the diesel engine
unit can have an upwardly removable upper-portion on which the
exhaust and air passages, together with the air filter and the
exhaust muffler pipe, are mounted.
This embodiment is desirable to provide directly ad-
jacent the unit forming the diesel engine, the cab as a sepa-
rate unit. The cab can have a separately or downwardly swing-
able roof portion which can project over the diesel engine unit.
The connections between the units can be provided be-
low the respective bottom plates and at a level between the up-
per and lower sides of the longitudinal and transverse beams.
The fuel tank of the vehicle can form a further unit
which is mounted upon the frame, preferably below the operator
cab, the bottom plate of the fuel tank corresponding in width to
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the bottom plates of the other units. Indeed, the operator's
cab can be mounted upon the fuel tank. Practically all of the
units with the exception of the cab can have a substantially
cubic configuration.
A~cordinq to the invention, therefore, with the open frame
construction in whlch the indivldual unlts have modular width
corresponding to the width of the frame, the appearance of the
railway carriage is not only aesthetlc but the assembly of the
various unlts with the frame can be effected without further
support elements bridging frame members or the like.
The low cost of the construction of the inventlon ls
promoted by forming the frame from bars or struts which can be
cut by oxyacetylene or other burning techniques from broader
bars or slab stock. In general, finishing of the burned edges
is not required and cushioning layers as described can be in-
serted between the units to be mounted on the frame and the
frame members.
It has also been found to be advantageous to leave a
gap between the bottom plates of the joining unit, e.g. of
about 10 mm in width, to permit fabrication toIerances to be
observed which are comparatively large and to facilitate mount-
ing, vibration or expansion and contraction phenomena.
Free space is provided below the bottom plates and
the tops of the transverse beams to accommodate the pipes,
electric service llnes or thelr fittings and it has been found
to be especially effective to provide a common cooling air
channel which is mounted in or on the frame or is provided
thereon. This cooling-air duct can supply not only the elec-
tric wheel-propulsion motors but also the control console, cir-
cuit boxes and the like which may produce heat because of elec-
trical losses.
For instance, in diesel e]ectric systems various
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electrical or electronic units may be provided to transform a
two-phase alternating current into three-phase alternating cur-
rent and such units, inverters, converters and transformers,
may be cooled with air from such ducts.
For this reason the cooling air duct should extend,
as noted, the full length of the vehicle frame which also af-
fords the advantage that the cooling air generator can be po-
sitioned at any point along this frame as may be desired.
The diesel engine can be provided with a housing
having a roof which can be removable to afford access to the
diesel engine from above. Various parts of the diesel engine
can be mounted on this roof so as to be removable therefrom.
Naturally, the vertical removal of the roof can conveniently
provide access to the diesel engine therebelow or the roof
may be removable together with the diesel engine for the sim-
plified mounting or the replacement of the latter in its entire-
ty.
When the fuel tank is located below the operator cab
as an independent unit and the bottom plate of the fuel tank
corresponds to the width of the other units, as described, not
only is assembly and filling of the tank facilitated, but it
has been found that the field of vision of the operator can be
improved.
Brief Description of the Drawing
The above and other objects, features and advantages
of the presen-t invention will become more readily apparent from
the following description, reference being made to the accom-
panying drawing in which:
FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic exploded view illustrating
the principles of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic section through the cooling
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unit of the invention;
FIG. 3 is a detail - view showing the fastening of
the units to the frame; and
FIG. 4 is a section through a coolinq duct pro-
vided on a railway carrier.
Specific Description
In FIG. 1 of the drawing, there is shown a self-pro-
pelled railway vehicle which can be used as an "engine" to push
or tow passive railway cars or carriages, either of a passenger
or of a freight train.
When the system operates with a diesel engine as a
prime mover, it usually rides upon rails on an exposed right of
way, although the motors may, if desired, be propelled by elec-
tric motors receiving energization from pylons or a third rail,
in which case the vehicle may be utilized for subway applica-
tion as well.
The self-propelled vehicle of the invention compri-
ses three wheel trucks, 2, 3, 4, mounted upon the vehicle frame
1 with the usual elastic suspension and driven by respective
electric motors 5, 6, 7.
Naturally, instead of electric motors, hydraulic mo-
tors can be used to propel the wheels of these trucks, in which
case the prime mover of the vehicle will drive, not an electric
generator, but a pump for delivering the hydraulic fluid to the
motors.
The frame 1 also carries a housing 8 formed as a
unitary cab for the vehicle operator, as well as individual
units 9-12 which are mounted directly upon the frame. It
should be noted that these units can be interchanged as to lo-
cations at whicll the individual units must be provided.
More particularly, the diesel engine 9 forms one of
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the units and can comprise a conventional diesel engine elec-
tric generator set not shown in detail.
The cooling unit 10 has been shown in great detail
in FIG. 2.
The control unit 11 has been shown only in diagram-
matic form and can be provided with the relay, power conversion
and the like electrical and electronic control systems for the
vehicle. The fourth unit is the fuel tank 12.
The units 8-12 are shown to be closed on all sides
and to have bottom plates 13-17, roof plates 18-21 (except for
a fuel tank 12, which as the upper wall of the tank forms an
equivalent to the roof plates) and lateral doors 22-25 (with
the exception of the fuel tank 12 which has lateral ports 26,
through which the fuel can be introduced).
This frame 1 has two massive front plates 27, 28,
welded to and bridged by longitudinally extending beams 29 and
30 which can run the full length of the vehicle.
Transverse beams 31 and 32 are provided to brace the
longitudinal beams and are welded to the latter.
While four such transverse beams are provided in
substantially equispaced relationship, only the two beams 31
and 32 can be seen, since the other beams lie somewhat lower
and are not visible.
The beams can be cut by acetylene torch burning from
a steel slab, the cut edges being turned downwardly or covered
with cushioning layers so they need not be finished.
The frame 1 is provided with a cooling duct 33 shown
in great detail in FIGS. 2-4 and only visible as indicated by
the dot-and-dash l~nes in the central region of FIG. 2, where
this duc-t is broken away.
At the right hand end of the duct 33, the latter
communicates with the cooling air unit 10 and distributes the
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cooling air via an opening (no-t shown) and bellows 34, 35 and
36 with the motors 5, 6 and 7.
At the left-hand end the cooling duct opens into the
control unit 11 via an opening 37 in the bottom plate 16 there-
of to cool the electrical devices in this unit.
In FIG. 1, the diesel engine is shown to be provided
with a cover plate or roof 19 which can be removed by lifting
it from the housing of the engine and which can also carry the
exhaust gas pipe 38, the fresh air intake pipe 39 and an air
filter 40. A muffler can also be provided on the exhaust pipe.
It will be apparent, therefore, that the diesel en-
gine which itself has not been illustrated, is accessible not
only through the doors 23 but also from above by removal of the
cover plate 19.
The roof 18, which is unitary with the cab 8, can
have eaves connected by hinges 41 to the remainder of the roof
so these hinged portions can overhang walkways adjacent to the
cab to protect personnel on these walkways from the sun. The
hinges permit the eaves to be swung out of the way to allow
the units 9 and 11 to be lifted from or mounted upon the frame.
As can be seen from FIG. 2, the unit 10 forming the
cooling system device, has an outlet 42 through which air is
blown into the atmosphere from the fan chamber or housing 46 by
a fan blade driven by an electric motor 46 forming an engine
cooler. An air intake port 45 can communicate with the engine
compartment of the adjacent unit 9 to draw air through the en-
gine compartment and thus dissipate heat from the radiator or
other portions of the cooling system thereof.
Unit 10 is also provided with an air intake 50 for the
cooling passage 33, the cool air being fed to the latter by a
fan assembly 48 driven by an electric motor 49. This cooling
air is separated by the inclined partition 44 from the engine
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cooling air.
A heat exchanger can be provided at 45, e.g. in the
form of the engine radiator, to facilitate cooling of the en-
gine.
The air for the cooling passage 33 can be led through
the baffle array 51, which serves to limit the noise output
and to protect against the introduction of foreign matter via
the air passage into the duct 33.
The inclined partition 44 and the diagonal orienta-
tion of the assembly 48, permits two blower assemblies and a
compressor 53 to be accommodated at the unit 10. The compres-
sor 53 can supply any compressed air needed for the vehicle,
e.g. for control purpose, air brakes or the like.
In addition, when the blower motors are driven by
hydraulic fluid,- the proximity of the unit 10 to the unit 9
can permit short pipes to carry the fluid between the units,
which is of great advantage in hydraulic systems.
To facilitate access to the unit 10, the portion
thereof provided with the acoustic baffle 51 can carry handles
such as the one shown at 54 to enable this portion of the hous-
ing to be swung upwardly about a hinge 55. A latch (not shown)
can releaseably retain this portion of the housing in the
closed state.
The bottom plate of the unit 10, like the bottom
plates 14, 16 and 17 of the units 9, 11 and 12, is mounted
upon the longitudinal beams 29 and 30 by a slab of rubber 62 as
shown in FIG. 3 so that the rubber slab can serve as a vibra-
tion damper and can compensate for irregularities of the sur-
faces of the longitudinal beams.
The surfaces of the transverse beams are set below
those of the longitudinal beams to permit the duct 33 to be
accommodated between the longitudinal beams (see FIG. 2).
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The fastening of the bottom plates 14-17 (FIG. 1) to
the longitudinal beams 29 and 30 can be effected by a bridge
piece 66 which clamps the bottom plate of two neighboring units
to the respective longitudinal beams. To this end, each plate
16 or 17 rests upon respective pads 62 and is separated by a
plate 65 formed with internally threaded bores 64 and welded to
the longitudinal beams.
The plates 16 and 17 each have laterally open slots
63 which partially embrace the plate 65 and are overlain by
the bridge piece 66. The latter has holes through which bolts
67 are passed to clamp the bridge 66 against the bot-tom plates
16 and 17.
FIG. 4 shows a cross-section through the cooling
passage 33 which can be formed by a plate 56 whose sides are
bent downwardly and can be bolted to a planar base plate 57.
Angle irons 58 can extend between the beams 29 and 30
to support the duct 33 and these angle irons can be fixed to
brackets 59 and 60 formed wi-th holes 61 at varying positions to
enable the brackets to be adjustably positioned upon the frame.
The holes can also serve to permit pipes, cables,
wires or the like to be run longitudinally along the frame.
These pipes or cables can provide for electrical current supply
to the motor, as compressed air lines to the brakes and as elec-
tric control or service lines, or even as hydraulic lines, as
may be required.
The high current lines and the control lines can be
separated from one another by the duct 33 so that stray elec-
tric fields do not affect the control circuit and the various
fluid and electric lines do not adversely affect one another.
