Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
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RAILROAD FREIGHT CAR FOR CARRYING MOTOR VEHICLES
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to railroad
freight cars and in particular to an articulated multi-
unit freight car for carrying motor vehicles on multiple
levels.
Railroad freight cars have long been used for
transporting newly manufactured automobiles long
distances from the point of manufacture or a port of
arrival to cities where dealerships are located or where
the automobiles are reloaded onto trucks for moving the
automobiles over highways to the locations of dealer-
ships. In order for such railroad freight cars to be
most economical it is desirable to carry a maximum number
of motor vehicles on each railroad car, but it is also
desired to be able to carry several different types of
motor vehicles on each car and to be able to reconfigure
the railroad freight car to carry such different types of
vehicles without undue difficulty.
It is known to adjust load-carrying decks in
motor vehicle-carrying railroad cars to facilitate
carrying different types of motor vehicles, but
provisions for making such adjustments in the past have
been unsatisfactory.
Not only is it desired to carry a maximum
number of automobiles or other motor vehicles on each
railroad car, it is also desired to keep the center of
gravity of a loaded car as low as possible, to promote
lateral stability of the loaded railroad car. Railroad
cars are restricted in size to fit within clearance
envelopes established by agreements reached among rail-
roads in order to avoid collisions between trains on
adjacent tracks and to ensure that all cars fit within
the clearances available along the rail lines at places
such as bridges and tunnels.
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In order to avoid pilferage or vandalism of
motor vehicles and to protect motor vehicles from air-
borne hazards, many railroad freight cars designed to
carry motor vehicles are enclosed and include roofs and
end doors. The height of such a car, including its roof,
is limited by the applicable clearance envelope. In
order to have a maximum of height available within the
confined space inside such a railroad freight car, then,
it is desired for the structure of its roof to be as
shallow as practical consistent with the strength
required for the roof to withstand the weather and the
forces resulting from loading, unloading, and operation
of the car as part of a train.
Although doors are needed at the ends of such
railroad freight cars to protect the motor vehicles
carried inside, it must be possible to open the doors to
provide ample clearance for loading and unloading the
cars, and it would be desired to do so without the open
doors being in the way of locomotives or cars on adjacent
tracks.
It is also necessary to be able to interconnect
vehicle-carrying decks of adjacent railroad freight cars
of the type disclosed in order to permit motor vehicles
to be moved from one of such cars to an adjacent similar
car or a loading dock during the process of loading or
unloading. The requirement for such interconnection
should not impose any limitations on the shape of the
ends of vehicle-carrying decks.
While it is necessary for a person to be able
to climb to upper vehicle-carrying decks in such a car
during the process of loading vehicles onto the car or
unloading them from the car, it is otherwise undesirable
for access to the upper decks to be available.
At most times it is desired to limit entry of
air, which may include smoke and airborne dust of types
which may be corrosive or abrasive and thus easily able
to damage the surface finish of newly-manufactured motor
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vehicles. This is important particularly because it
takes a significant amount of time for paint and other
protective coatings to reach to their maximum toughness
and hardness.
What is needed, then, is an improved railroad
freight car which is easily adjustable to serve for
carrying a maximum number of motor vehicles of differing
sizes and for providing ample protection of such motor
vehicles against pilferage and against damage from the
elements.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes the
aforementioned shortcomings of prior art railroad cars
and meets the aforementioned needs by providing an
improved multi-unit railroad freight car for carrying
motor vehicles on multiple levels, protectively covered,
in railroad car bodies each including a motor vehicle-
carrying floor in a well defined between a pair of side
sills. In a railroad freight car which is a preferred
embodiment of the present invention, portions of the
floor of each well are inclined, and the top of an inter-
mediate body bolster located at one end of the well is
also inclined downwardly toward the bottom of the well.
In one embodiment of the present invention a
pair of motor vehicle decks are spaced upwardly above the
well floor, where they are adjustable in height and are
counterbalanced against each other to facilitate movement
of both decks.
In a preferred embodiment of the car, a pair of
three-panel doors are provided at each end of the car and
at least one such three-panel door carries a ladder on an
inner side of one panel, so that the ladder is accessible
when the three-panel door is open but is not available
when the door is closed.
A railroad car which is one embodiment of the
invention includes protective side walls of sheet metal
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construction each including side posts extending upwardly
above a middle chord, included in a side sill, to a top
chord of the car body.
In one embodiment of such a car, a roof of
transversely corrugated sheet metal extends upwardly and
transversely above the side walls, interconnecting the
two side walls on opposite sides of the car body, with
reinforcement and support of the roof provided by tapered
carlines which extend upwardly and slope inwardly along
steeply inclined lateral portions of the roof but do not
extend across the substantially horizontal, center
portion of the roof, which is self-supporting, yet has a
shallow depth leaving a maximum interior height available
inside the car body.
In accordance with another aspect of the
present invention several brake system components are
assembled into a module which can be tested separately
from the remainder of the car and which is installed and
may be removed from the car as a module, simplifying
assembly and installation of the brake system.
In a preferred embodiment of the present
invention, clearance for accommodating the height of
vehicles is maximized by reducing the height of surfaces
supporting the laterally spaced-apart wheels of motor
vehicles and increasing the height of bottom surfaces of
motor vehicle decks by providing cambered deck profiles.
In accordance with yet a further aspect of the
present invention, an adjustable hinge in an operative
configuration extends from one end of a vehicle-carrying
deck of the railroad freight car of the present inven-
tion. Such a hinge is movable with respect to the
vehicle-carrying deck about a vertical pivot axis, into
a stowage configuration in which a hinge body is housed
within a pocket defined in such a vehicle-carrying deck.
The foregoing and other objectives, features,
and advantages of the invention will be more readily
understood upon consideration of the following detailed
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description of the invention, taken in conjunction with
the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
5 FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a
multi-unit railroad freight car embodying the present
invention.
FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of one car
unit and a part of the other unit of the car shown in
FIG. 1, at an enlarged scale.
FIG. 3 is a cutaway side elevational view of a
car body of one unit of the multi-unit railroad freight
car shown in F.IG. 1 showing the mechanisms for adjusting
the heights of the motor vehicle-carrying decks of the
car body and showing an end portion of one of the motor-
vehicle-carrying decks in a upwardly inclined position to
provide clearance during loading and unloading of the
car.
FIG. 4 is a section view, at an enlarged scale,
of a side sill of the car body of the car unit shown in
FIG. 2, taken along line 4-4.
FIG. 5 is a section view, at an enlarged scale,
of a side sill of the car body of the car unit shown in
FIG. 2, taken along line 5-5.
FIG. 6 is a section view, at an enlarged scale,
of a side sill of the car body of the car unit shown in
FIG. 2, taken along line 6-6.
FIG. 7 is a partially cutaway view of parts of
the adjacent ends of the multi-unit car shown in FIG. 1,
at an enlarged scale.
FIG. 8 is a section of a top portion of the
body bolster and lower portions of the side walls f the
car body shown in FIG. 3, taken along line 8-8.
FIG. 9 is a simplified sectional view of the
car body shown in FIG. 2, taken along line 9-9, showing
a pair of motor vehicle-carrying decks in a first
configuration.
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FIG. 10 is a sectional view, taken on the same
plane as FIG. 9, showing the motor vehicle-carrying decks
in a different configuration.
FIG. 11 is a sectional view, taken along the
same plane as FIG. 9, showing the motor vehicle-carrying
decks in yet a third configuration.
FIG. 12 is a detail view of a part of the
mechanisms for adjusting the heights of the motor
vehicle-carrying decks of the car body.
FIG. 13 is a simplified schematic end view of
the car body shown in FIG. 3, showing a portion of the
support apparatus used for raising an end portion of a
motor vehicle-carrying deck during loading and unloading
of the freight car.
FIG. 14 is an end elevational view of the
railroad freight car shown in FIG. 1, showing an
arrangement of three-panel end doors which form one
aspect of the present invention.
FIG. 15 is a top plan view of an end portion
of the railroad freight car shown in FIG. 1, with the
three-panel doors shown in FIG. 14 in a closed position.
FIG. 16 is a top plan view of adjacent end
portions of a pair of railroad freight cars of the type
shown in FIG. 1, with the three-panel end doors in their
open positions and bridge plates in place between the
adjacent cars.
FIG. 17 is a partially cutaway side view of a
portion of the roof of the railroad freight car shown in
FIG. 1, at an enlarged scale.
FIG. 18 is a detail view, at an enlarged scale,
showing the manner of attachment of the roof shown in
FIG. 17 to the side wall of the railroad car shown in
FIG. 1.
FIG. 19 is a view taken in the direction
indicated by line 19-19 in FIG. 18, showing the intercon-
nection of the roof shown in FIG. 17 to the side wall of
the railroad car shown in FIG. 1.
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FIG. 20 is a section view on line 20-20 of
FIG. 18 showing the attachment of a carline as a portion
of the structure of the roof of the railroad freight car
shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 21 is a top plan view of bridge plates
between adjacent body bolsters and a flexible diaphragm
interconnecting the bodies of the car units of the multi-
unit freight car shown in FIG. 1 at an articulated
coupling between the car units.
FIG. 22 is a top plan view of the air brake
system module shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 23 is a front elevational view of the air
brake system module shown in FIG. 22.
FIG. 24 is an end elevational view of the air
brake system module shown in FIG. 22.
FIG. 25 is a simplified top plan view showing
ends of a pair of automobile-carrying decks of a pair of
railroad freight cars with bridge structures extending
between the adjacent ends of the decks in position to
permit motor vehicles to be moved from one car unit to
another, and showing one end of each bridge structure
supported by a hinge assembly which is one aspect of the
present invention.
FIG. 26 is a partially cut-away top plan view
of a portion of a deck of the railroad freight car, show-
ing a hinge arrangement in use to attach one of a pair of
bridge structures to an end of the deck.
FIG. 27 is a partially cut-away top plan view
of a deck of the railroad freight car, showing a hinge,
assembly in a stowed position within a pocket defined by
a portion of the deck.
FIG. 28 is a top plan view of the stowed hinge
assembly shown in FIG. 27 with parts of the hinge
assembly cut away for clarity.
FIG. 29 is an elevational view taken along Line
29-29 of FIG. 28, showing the hinge assembly in its
stowed position.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to FIG. 1 of the drawings which
form a part of the disclosure herein, a multi-unit rail-
road freight car 30 embodying the present invention
includes a pair of car units 32 and 34, with a conven-
tional two axle truck 36 and a coupler 38 at an outer end
39 of each of the car units 32 and 34. A shared truck 40
supports both of a pair of adjacent ends 42, 44 of the
car units 32, 34, which are interconnected with each
other and the shared truck 40 through an articulating
coupling 45 associated with the shared truck 40.
The car units 32, 34 each have enclosed bodies
with upright side walls 46 and roofs 48, and a flexible
cover or diaphragm 50 interconnects the side walls 46 and
roof 48 of the car unit 32 with those of the adjacent car
unit 34.
Cargo Well
Referring to FIGS. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, the
car unit 34, which is essentially identical to the car
unit 32, includes a car body 52 whose structure includes
a body bolster 54 at its outer end 39, and a body bolster
56 at its opposite, or articulated, end, supported by the
previously-mentioned shared truck 40. Extending along a
pair of laterally opposite sides 51 and 53 of the car
body 52, and interconnecting the body bolsters 54 and 56,
are a pair of deep side sills 58, defining a cargo well
59. Each side sill 58 includes a middle chord 60 of the
car body 52, a downwardly extending web plate 62, and a
bottom chord 64.
In a longitudinally central portion of the car
body 52, the bottom chord 64 is a longitudinally extend-
ing piece of bent plate thicker than the web plate 62,
having a generally horizontal, inwardly-extending flange
portion 66 interconnected through an arcuately curved
portion with a diagonally upwardly and outwardly inclined
leg 68 extending parallel with and welded to a lower
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portion 69 of the web plate 62. The lower portion 69
extends diagonally downwardly and inwardly from a hori-
zontally extending longitudinal bend line 70, above which
the web plate 62 extends generally vertically. The
middle chord 60 may include a deep C-shaped formed
channel 73 whose legs 74 extend outwardly and which is
welded to the inner side and upper margin of the web
plate 62, forming a box section similar in form similar
to that of the side sills of the railroad freight car
disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,170,718.
In the portions of the car body 52 that are
closer to the body bolsters 54 and 56, tapered fishtail-
shaped plates 76 extending generally vertically and
longitudinally are located alongside and laterally spaced
inwardly apart from the web plate 62, depending beneath
the inner side or web 78 of the C-shaped channel 73 of
the middle chord 60. The web plate 62 is similarly
tapered to a shallower depth near the body bolsters 54
and 56. The bottom chord 64 in the tapered portions of
each side sill 58 extends at an upwardly inclined slope
toward the respective one of the body bolsters 54, 56.
In the tapered end portions of the side sills 58 the
bottom chord 64 is a substantial angle member 84 attached
to the inner face of each plate 76 with an upright leg
86 welded to the plate 76 and an inwardly-directed
horizontal leg 88.
The body bolster 54 at each outer end of the
car 30 is of a shallow transversely-extending box
configuration including a top plate 55 which extends
transversely of the car between the middle chords 60 of
the two side sills 58. A pair of portions 80 of the top
plate 55, on either side of the center bearing of the
truck 36, are depressed a small distance as channels to
receive the wheels of a motor vehicle and thus to provide
a small additional amount of overhead clearance. A floor
plate 83 extending from the top plate 55 to the outer end
39 of the car body 52 is sloped upwardly from the portion
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80 toward the outer end 39 of the car body 52, at a
shallow angle of, for example, about 2°.
The body bolster 56 adjacent the articulated
end of each car unit 32, 34 is of anon-rectangular
5 transverse box design and has a heavy top plate 57
including an end portion 90 located nearer the end 42 of
the car unit 32, whose top surface is generally hori-
zontal, while an inner portion 92 of the top plate 57,
closer to the middle of the car unit 34, is inclined
10 downwardly toward the longitudinally central portion of
the car body 52, at a shallow angle of, for example,
approximately 5° below the horizontal.
The middle chords 60 on each side 51 and 53 of
the car body rest atop the laterally outboard portions of
the body bolsters 54 and 56, thus resting on the top
plates 55 and 57. The side sills 58 are welded to the
body bolsters 54 and 56 with only the middle chords 60
above the body bolsters 54 and 56, and with the rest of
the side sills depending below the height of the top
plates 55 and 57 to define the cargo well between the
side sills 58 and between the body bolsters 54 and 56.
Resting atop and interconnected with the bottom
chords 64 of the side sills 58 is a transversely-
extending well floor 100, which is generally flat in a
transverse direction and substantially planar and hori-
zontal in the longitudinally central portion of the car
body 52. The well floor 100 is inclined upwardly toward
the sloped portion 92 of the top plate 57 of the body
bolster 56. The well floor 100 is preferably very gradu-
ally curved as seen in side view (FIGS. 3,7), and the
angle member 84 is bent to support the well floor in such
a large-radius curvature. The well floor is constructed
of transversely corrugated sheet metal, to provide the
required strength with light weight, and is held down to
the bottom chord 64 of the side sills 58 by flat bar 103
located atop the lateral margins 101 of the well floor
100 and welded to the web plate 62 of the side sills 58.
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An additional layer of material is located atop
the corrugated sheet metal along the tracks to be
followed by the tires of motor vehicles being carried,
and includes an upper, motor vehicle-supporting surface
102. The upper surface 102 of the well floor 100 at each
end of the car body 52 is aligned in height even with the
top of the respective body bolster 54 or 56.
The upper surface 102 of the well floor is
defined in one embodiment of the invention by a grating
of a type compatible with a chock system permitting
chocks to be attached to the grating at any required
position along the upper surface 102 of the well floor
100 to hold a motor vehicle in any desired position along
the well floor 100. One such chock system, for example,
is disclosed in Winsor U.S. Patent No. 5,302,063, and the
radius of curvature of the well floor is great enough,
with only large radius curvatures, with a radius of 350
inches or more, 440 inches for example, so that such a
chock can be mounted at any location along the well floor
100, without any positions made unavailable by curvature.
The central portion of the well floor 100 thus
is as much as 26 inches below the tops of the body
bolsters 54 and 56, which permits motor vehicles to be
carried with their wheels supported at a minimum height
above the tracks on which the railroad car 30 is located.
This lowers the center of gravity of the loaded car,
while providing a maximum clearance height within the car
bodies 52, above motor vehicles stowed in the cargo wells
59 of the car 30. The large radius of curvature of the
sloped parts of well floor 100 also assures ample clear-
ance beneath the bottom of a motor vehicle being loaded
or unloaded over the trucks 36 and 40.
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Movable Decks
Motor vehicle-carrying decks 104 and 106 are
provided above the well floor 100 to support motor
vehicles in the car units 32 and 34 at one or two addi-
tional levels. Preferably, the motor vehicle-carrying
decks 104 and 106 are of transversely corrugated sheet
metal structure, transversely arched to provide an upward
camber, with downwardly open, shallow channel members 107
extending longitudinally of the car body 52 welded to the
top of the decks 104, 106 to add longitudinal rigidity.
This structure allows the decks 104 and 106 to have a
very small vertical depth 98 so that a maximum vertical
clearance is available for motor vehicles to be carried.
The two motor vehicle-carrying decks 104, 106
are adjustable in height to provide different amounts of
vertical clearance above, between, and below them as is
illustrated in FIGS. 9, 10, and 11. In a first arrange-
ment of the motor vehicle-carrying decks 104, 106, shown
in FIG. 9, approximately equal clearance heights 108, 110
are provided above both of the motor vehicle-carrying
decks 104, 106, so that the railroad car 30 can be used
to carry moderately tall motor vehicles such as mini-vans
on all three levels of the car body 52. The motor
vehicle-carrying decks 104 and 106 preferably also have
grates 111 compatible with the previously-mentioned chock
system as their upper surfaces along the wheel tracks for
motor vehicles to be carried.
In FIG. 10, the two motor vehicle-carrying
decks 104 and 106 are shown in a mid-height position with
the upper motor vehicle-carrying deck 106 closely atop
the lower motor vehicle-carrying deck 104, giving maximum
height clearances 112, 114 above the well floor 100 and
above the upper motor vehicle supporting deck 106, to
permit taller motor vehicles such as light trucks to be
carried on both the well floor 100 and the upper motor
vehicle-carrying deck 106.
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In FIG. 11, the motor vehicle-carrying decks
104 and 106 are shown arranged at heights similar to
those of motor vehicle decks available in previously
known railroad cars, in order to facilitate loading and
unloading the railcar 30 at loading docks designed to
accommodate previously known motor vehicle-carrying rail-
cars. This arrangement of the motor vehicle-carrying
decks 104, 106 provides only a smaller clearance height
116 between the lower and upper motor vehicle-carrying
decks 104 and 106, but provides for carriage of motor
vehicles of low overall height with the center of gravity
of the loaded car 30 somewhat lower by comparison with
the arrangement shown in FIG. 9. Nevertheless, the
vertical clearance 116 is ample for a passenger auto
between the top surface of the lower motor vehicle
supporting deck 104 and the bottom of the upper motor
vehicle supporting deck 106, in a preferred embodiment of
the invention.
As may be seen with reference to FIGS. 3 and
12, the adjustment of the heights of the motor vehicle-
carrying decks 104 and 106 is accomplished easily in the
railcar 30 according to the present invention. Each side
wall 46 of the car body 52 includes upright side posts
122 spaced apart from each other longitudinally of the
car body, with a center-to-center spacing of 3 feet, for
example. The side walls 46 are preferably of welded
sheet metal construction including flanged rolled
channels forming the upright side posts 122 so that the
side walls are light, yet strong enough to support the
weight of the motor vehicle-carrying decks 104, 106 and
the motor vehicles carried thereon. A top chord 124
extending longitudinally of the car 30, between corner
posts 126 located respectively at each end of the car
body 52, interconnects the upper ends of the side posts
122. The top chord 124 is preferably of formed metal
plate, for example 1/4 inch thick, with a horizontal
inwardly directed bottom, or foot portion 140, a lower
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vertical portion 142, an upward diagonal portion 144, and
a vertical upper margin portion 146.
Each upright side post 122 of the side wall 46
is attached to the top chord 124 by a short filler plug
148 which is welded to the bottom of the inwardly-
directed horizontal foot portion 140 of the top chord
124, and which extends downwardly within the upwardly-
open top end of the side post 122, while the upper end of
the outermost sheet of the side wall 46 extends upwardly
along the lower vertical portion 142 of the top chord
member 124.
The motor vehicle decks 104 and 106 are each
provided in the form of three segments arranged end-to-
end, and, at any of the available heights, each of the
segments is fastened securely and tightly to the side
posts 122 by bolts 128 or other releasable but tight
fasteners so that the motor vehicle-carrying decks 104
and 106 are incorporated structurally in and add rigidity
to the entire car body 52 as well as being solidly
supported by the side walls 46.
The corresponding segments of each deck 104,
106 located above one another are connected to each other
and counterbalanced against each other through a set of
interconnecting and supporting cables 130, each of which
extends upwardly from both of a pair of interconnected
counterbalancing deck segments and rides around a respec-
tive pulley 134 supported by the top chord 124 of the
respective one of the side walls 46. Preferably, the
height of each pulley 134 is adjustable, as by the pulley
134 being suspended from a lever 136 movable by means of
an adjustment screw 138 to place the respective cable 130
in tension and thus transfer a respective part of the
weight of the respective segment of both motor vehicle-
carrying decks 104, 106 to the pulley.
When the paired segments of the motor vehicle-
carrying decks 104 and 106 are unfastened from the side
posts 122 by removing the bolts 128 they are supported by
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the cables 130 and can be moved toward and away from each
other in a counterbalanced relationship in moving, for
example, between the positions shown in FIG. 9 and the
positions shown in FIG. 10. Once the position of a
5 segment of one of the decks 104, 106 has been established
and that segment is secured in place by bolts 128 attach-
ing it to the side posts 122, the position of the other
deck segment of the pair can be adjusted precisely by
movement of the screw 138 that controls the lever 136
10 supporting the pulley 134 with respect to each end and
each side of the motor vehicle-carrying deck segment
concerned. The same method is used for adjusting the
heights of each of the pairs of segments of the upper and
lower motor vehicle-carrying decks 104, 106 for the
15 entire length of each car unit 32 or 34.
Adjacent each end of each car unit 32 or 34, a
hinged portion 150 of the lower motor vehicle-carrying
deck 104 can be raised as much as about 4 feet to an
inclined position above the beams 154, which remain
fastened to the side walls 46 by the bolts 128 and extend
longitudinally of the car. An inner end of the hinged
portion 150 of the deck is attached to the beams 154 by
hinges 152. The hinges 152 extend upward to a pivot axis
156 through which the inner end of the of the deck is
attached to the longitudinal beams 154 on either side.
A winch line or lifting cable 160 is connected
to the hinged portion 150 of the deck 104, on the first
side 51 of the car body 52, near an end of the car unit,
and extends upward around a sheave 162 which may be
mounted in a fixed location, preferably on the first side
post 122 of the car body toward the mid-length of each
car unit from the nearest corner post 126. The cable 160
extends from the sheave 162 down to a winch 164, which
may be manually operable, power-driven, or adapted to
receive a portable motor, and which is used to raise the
hinged portion 150 of the deck 104 by winding up the
lifting cable 160.
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As shown in FIG. 13, the movable outer end 165
of the hinged portion 150 of the motor-vehicle carrying
deck 104 is kept level, and twisting is prevented, by a
static line 166 attached to the side wall 46 of the car
body 52 in a location 167 near the lifting cable sheave
162, but on the laterally opposite side 53 of the car
body 52. The static line 166 may be a steel cable, for
example, and extends downward and beneath a guide element
such as the static line sheave 168 attached to the hinged
portion 150, and thence transversely beneath the hinged
portion 150 of the deck 104 to the side of the deck where
the lifting cable 160 is located. The static line 166
then passes over the top of another guide element
attached to the hinging segment 150, such as a second
static line sheave 170, and extends further downward, to
a location 172 where a lower end of the static line 166
is fixedly attached to the side wall 46 of the car body
52. With the appropriate amount of tension maintained in
the static line 166, regardless of the height of the
hinged portion 150 of the deck 104, and regardless of the
position of the entire lower motor vehicle-carrying deck
104 with respect to the car body 52, the static line 166
will keep the outer end 165 of the hinged portion 150 of
the deck substantially level with the side of the hinged
portion 150 of the deck to which the lifting cable 160 is
connected.
The hinged portion 150 of the motor vehicle-
carrying deck 104 can thus be raised easily during load-
ing of motor vehicles into the cargo well 59 to provide
ample overhead clearance as motor vehicles pass over the
truck 36 at each end of the multi-unit car 30 or over the
shared truck 40 between car units 32 and 34.
End Doors
At each end of the multi-unit car 30, a pair of
hinged three-panel doors 180 and 182 close the respective
end of the multi-unit car 30. Each three-panel door 180
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or 182 extends the entire height of the car body, as
shown in FIG. 14, and extends from one side of the car
body to the centerline 184 of the car body, as shown in
FIGS. 14 and 15.
As shown in FIG. 16, each three-panel door 180
or 182 may be swung open into a position in which the
three vertically-extending segments of each door, a
corner panel 186, a middle panel 188, and a center panel
190, nest closely alongside each other and adjacent the
respective corner post 126 of the car body 52, to which
each of the three-panel doors is attached by a respective
set of hinges 192.
The corner door panel 186 extends diagonally
inward and slightly toward the end of the car from the
corner post 126 when the three-panel door 180 is fully
closed, and the middle and center panels 188, 190 extend
substantially transversely, aligned with each other and
with the center and middle panels 188, 190 of the door
182 on the opposite side of the centerline of the car 30.
The middle and center panels 190 of the door 180 or 182
are attached to the corner panel 186 and middle panel
188, respectively, by hinges 194 which permit them to be
folded parallel with each other and nearly parallel with
the corner panel. The folded door 180 or 182 thus fits
partially within the space defined by the J-shaped corner
posts, as shown in FIG. 16, so that the folded door 180
or 182 extends outward, laterally of the car body 52,
only a minimum distance 196, thus remaining within the
available clearance envelope when the outer ends 39 of
the car are fully opened to permit loading and unloading
of motor vehicles. Thus, with the three-panel doors 180
and 182 fully opened, the doors are not exposed to damage
from properly operated railroad trains on an adjacent
track.
A ladder 198, including several horizontal
rungs, or steps 200, supported by a pair of vertical side
members 202, is attached to an inner side of the corner
CA 02218006 1997-10-10
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panel 186, and is available for use to climb to the upper
motor vehicle-carrying deck 106, with ample clearance, as
shown at 204, available between the ladder 198 and an
adjacent bridge plate 206 extending between one of the
motor vehicle-carrying decks 104 or 106 of the car 30 and
an adjacent car 30 or a loading dock (not shown). When
the doors 180, 182 are closed, however, the ladder 198
enclosed is inside the car and thus is unavailable, so
that it cannot be used to gain unauthorized access to
motor vehicles or other cargo carried in the car 30.
Roof
Referring to FIGS. 17, 18 and 19, the roof 48
extends upward above the top chords 124 and encloses the
top of each car body 52. The roof 48 is of corrugated
sheet metal construction which is, in a laterally central
span 210, generally horizontal and self-supporting as a
result of the corrugation of the sheet metal of which the
roof 48 is constructed. A lower portion 212 of the roof
48, on each side of the car 30, extends steeply upward
and curves arcuately inward toward the center line 184 of
the car. Alternatively, the lower portions 212 of the
roof 48 could be constructed of similarly corrugated
sheet metal in the form of generally flat panels (not
shown) joined at shallow angles.
A plurality of upwardly projecting reinforcing
members, or partial carlines 214 are spaced apart longi-
tudinally of the car 30 and are fastened to the inner, or
lower, side of the lower portions 212 of the roof 48 at
intervals corresponding with and aligned with the
locations of the upstanding side posts 122 which are part
of each side wall 46 of the car body 52. Each carline
214 is tapered from a widest or bottom end 216 portion
adjacent the top chord 124 of the side wall 46 of the car
body 52, to a narrow upper end 218. Each carline 214 is
attached by fasteners 220 such as rivets, bolts, or the
equivalent to the sheet metal of which the roof 48 itself
CA 02218006 1997-10-10
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is constructed, and the lower end 216 of each carline 214
extends downwardly along the inner side of the vertical
top portion 146 of the top chord member 124, to which the
margin of the lower portion 212 of the upwardly extending
arcuate roof panel is fastened by similar fasteners.
Thus, the bottom ends 216 of the carlines 214 are spaced
upwardly apart from the upper margin of the top chord
member 124 by a small distance. An upright connecting
member 222 is fastened to the lower end of the inner face
of each carline by a similar fastener 220 and extends
downward to and rests upon an upper face of the inwardly-
directed horizontal bottom, or foot portion 140 of the
top chord member 124, directly above the corresponding
side post member 122. The upright connecting member 222
may have the form of a U-shaped channel, with a bottom
portion of one leg of the channel cut away to provide
access to weld the lower end of the upright connecting
member 222 to the foot 140 of the top chord member 124
and to provide access for installation of one of the
fasteners 220.
The outer skin of the roof 48, and the carlines
214, are made of pressed sheet metal, for example 14
gauge galvanized steel, with corrugations spaced 6 inches
apart, center-to-center, for example, with each corruga-
tion 7/8 inch deep, so that, including the thickness of
the steel sheet, the depth 224 of the roof 48, from its
uppermost outside surface to its lowermost inside surface
at any point, is less than 1 inch. A clear horizontal
span beneath the highest part of the roof 48 is nearly 4
feet wide, and a clear span between the topmost portions
218 of the carlines 214 is nearly 8 feet wide, in a
preferred embodiment of the invention.
Preferably, the roof 48 may be made in sections
each extending longitudinally of the car body the same
distance as, or a multiple of the distance between adja-
cent upright side posts 122, so that the overlap of
adjacent segments of the roof 48 coincides with and is
CA 02218006 1997-10-10
fastened by the fasteners 220 attaching the carline 214
to the interior of the roof 48 as shown in FIG. 20.
Fasteners 220 are spaced apart along each overlap joint
between adjacent segments of the roof at appropriate
5 distances, for example, approximately 9 inches, center-
to-center, the spacing chosen to be close enough to cause
adjacent longitudinal segments of the roof to support
each other and remain rigidly interconnected.
10 Flexible Diaphragm
Between the adjacent ends 42 and 44 of the
adjacent car units 32 and 34 of the multi-unit motor
vehicle-carrying car 30 of the present invention, the
flexible diaphragm 50 interconnects the sidewalls 46 and
15 roof 48 of the adjacent car bodies 52, to provide protec-
tion against intrusion of dust-laden air or precipitation
and to provide protection against unauthorized entry of
persons or animals. The nominal distance between the
side walls 46 and roofs 48 of adjacent ends 42 and 44 of
20 the car units 32 and 34 may be 30 inches, for example,
but may vary because of track curves in horizontal and
vertical planes to be as small as about 7 inches or as
much as about 52 inches. The diaphragm 50 must also
accommodate lateral sway of the car units 32 and 34 in
opposite directions.
Bridging the space between the adjacent ends of
the adjacent car units, on either side of the articulat-
ing coupling 45 interconnecting the car bodies 52, are a
pair of bridge plates 232 shown in FIG. 21, one on either
lateral side of the articulating coupling 45. Each
bridge plate 232 is supported by the body bolsters 56 of
both of the two car units 32, 34 and is attached to one
of them so as to be movable with respect to the other in
order to accommodate the relative movement of the car
bodies 52 as the car 30 negotiates curves in the track on
which it is operating. An outer margin 234 of each
bridge plate 232 is arcuately curved.
CA 02218006 1997-10-10
21
The diaphragm 50 has the overall shape of an
inverted U, and on each side 51, 53 of the car 30 has an
upright portion 236 interconnecting the adjacent car body
side walls 46 with vertical margins attached to the
margins of the side walls 46. An arcuately curved upper
portion 238 approximates the curvature of the roofs 208
of the adjacent car bodies 52. The diaphragm includes a
flexible membrane 242 of a rubber-like material joined to
the margins of the car body side walls 46 and roofs 48 by
clamping brackets at the adjacent ends 42 and 44. The
overall length of the flexible membrane 242 is greater
than the greatest distance between adjacent side wall
margins when the car 30 is on curved track, in order to
accommodate relative movement between the car units 32
and 34, and the membrane is formed in a way which urges
it to form curved pleats elastically, as with the bellows
of an accordion, as the margins of the car body side
walls 46 approach one another.
Preferably, the flexible membrane 242 in the
upright portions 236 of the diaphragm 50 may be rein-
forced with suitable flexible fiber such as Kevlar~
aramid fiber cords or steel wires embedded in the rubber-
like material, to be strong enough to resist entry. The
membrane of the upper portion of the diaphragm 50, how-
ever, as it extends between the curved and horizontal
portions of the roofs 48, may be subjected to an amount
of elastic stretching, requiring that part of the
membrane to be self-supporting and entirely of an elastic
material.
Modular Brake System
A brake system module 252 is supported beneath
the car body 32, as shown in FIG. 1, and is shown in
greater detail in FIGS. 22-24. As shown in FIG. 22, the
brake system module 252 includes a modular support frame
having a pair of frame sides 254 interconnected by
shorter cross members 256 and 258. Near and partially
CA 02218006 1997-10-10
22
supported by the cross member 258, a large generally
cylindrical air reservoir 260 is mounted on the support
frame. Adjacent to and supported partially by the
cross member 256 at the other end of the frame is a
conventional air brake control valve 262, which controls
~ operation of the air brakes on the car 30. A tramline
connector pipe 266 extends to a tee fitting 268 to
connect the pipe 266 to the trainline 270 which extends
longitudinally of the car. A brake cylinder connector
line 272 also extends from the valve 262, with a branch
274 extending to a dummy reservoir 276 attached to one of
the frame sides 254 by a suitable support frame 278
located near the air reservoir 260. A retaining valve
280 is also mounted on one of the frame side members 254,
near the valve 262.
At each end of each of the support frame, holes
are provided in frame side members 254 so that the module
252 can be attached to the car body 52 by bolting the
frame side members 254 to respective mounting brackets
282 attached to the car body 52, and by connecting the
train line 270 of the car 30 to the tee fitting 268 and
the brake cylinder line 284 of the car 30 to the brake
cylinder connector line 272.
The brake system module 252 thus includes the
parts which are difficult to repair and the fittings
which may be difficult to attach, all in the single
module 252 which can be assembled and tested as a
complete unit apart from the car 30 itself, thus simpli-
fying assembly and installation of the brake system for
the car 30.
Deck-Edge Hinge Assembly
Turning next to FIGS. 25-29, decks 104 of a
pair of multi-unit cars 30 are shown in FIG: 25 with
their outer ends 39 adjacent one another, and a pair of
bridge units 286 and 288 are attached to the vehicle-
carrying deck 104 of one of the cars 30. An outer end
CA 02218006 1997-10-10
23
290 of each of the bridges 286 and 288 rests atop the
outer end 39 of the vehicle-carrying deck 104 of the
adjacent car 30. An inner or nearer end 292 of each of
the bridges 286 and 288 is supported so as to be pivot-
s able about a horizontal pivot axis 294 defined by a hinge
combination including a fixed hinge 296 including a first
hinge pivot member and an adjustable hinge 298 shown in
greater detail in FIGS. 26, 27, 28, and 29. A fixed
hinge 297 and an adjustable hinge 299, located on the
opposite side of the deck 104, are mirror images of the
fixed hinge 296 and the adjustable hinge 298.
In FIGS. 26, 27, and 28, a top plate 300 of the
deck 104 has been cut away, exposing the interior of a
deck edge pocket 302 which is open outwardly along an
oblique margin 304. A horizontal hinge pin or shaft 306
extends through a tubular housing 308 which is part of
the inner end 292 of the bridge unit 286. A first end
309 of the shaft 306 extends into a gudgeon 310 which is
the first hinge pivot member of the fixed hinge 296, and
which is located along a transverse margin 311 of the
outer end 39 of the deck 104. The opposite end 312 of
the shaft 306 extends into a gudgeon 314 which is part of
the adjustable hinge 298. A bridge support plate 316 is
located beneath the gudgeon 310 and extends laterally
toward the adjustable hinge 298 and beneath the tubular
housing 308, which can rest upon the support plate 316
temporarily while the first end 306 of the shaft is being
inserted into the bore of the gudgeon 296.
Similarly, the adjustable hinge 298 includes a
bridge support plate portion 318 that extends laterally
from the gudgeon 314 toward the fixed hinge 296 and
beneath the tubular housing 308 when the adjustable hinge
298 is in its outwardly extended operative position as
shown in FIG. 26.
When the bridge 286 is disconnected from the
deck 104, the adjustable hinge 298 can be swung into a
stowage location within the pocket 302, where it is
CA 02218006 1997-10-10
24
preferably held by a catch, such as a simple spring catch
320 in the form of a metal strip. The pocket 302 is
defined in part by a metal web member 336, to which the
catch 320 is attached, as by the use of rivets.
In a preferred embodiment of the movable hinge
298, a hinge body 322 includes a pivot arm such as the
neck portion 324 attached to a base or mounting 326
through a mounting pivot joint defining a vertical pivot
axis 328. The base or mounting 326 is of welded con-
struction and preferably includes a pair of plates 330
interconnected with each other by a spacer wall 332. The
plates 330 are located between and respective ones of
them welded to the top plate 300 and a bottom plate 334
of the deck 104 a small distance into the pocket 302 from
the oblique margin 304.
The hinge body 322 includes a bottom plate 338
which includes the support plate portion 318. A top
plate 340 and the bottom plate 338 are welded to opposite
sides of the neck 324, which may be a single piece of
heavy plate material having a thickness 342 appropriate
to fit snugly but movably between the top and the bottom
plates 330 of the mounting 326. The mounting pivot joint
pivot pin 344 is mounted in the top and bottom plates 330
and extends through a bore defined in the neck 324,
attaching it pivotably to the mounting 326.
The top and bottom plates 338 and 340 of the
hinge body 322 are interconnected further by a pair of
webs 346 extending vertically and lengthwise of the hinge
body 322, and the gudgeon 314 is welded to a top surface
of the bottom plate 334, while the top plate 340 includes
a narrow portion 349 welded to the gudgeon. An opening
348 in the top plate 300 exposes the narrow portion 349
of the top plate 340 so that it can be engaged to pull
the adjustable hinge 298 from its stowage position toward
its extended, operative position.
Preferably, an inner end face 350 of the hinge
body, defined by the top and bottom plates 334 and 340,
CA 02218006 1997-10-10
is met by corresponding stops in the form of margin
portions 352 and 354 of the plates 330, limiting movement
of the hinge body 322 into its stowage position in the
pocket 302 and into the extended, operative position,
5 respectively.
With the adjustable hinge 298 located in the
stowage configuration shown in FIGS. 27, 28, and 29, the
oblique margin 304 of the deck 104 is clear of projec-
tions, so that the doors 180, 182 of the car 30 can be
10 closed around the deck 104.
It will be understood that similar hinge
assemblies including fixed hinges 296, 297 and adjustable
hinges 298, 299 would also be provided in other decks or
floors, such as the movable deck 106, of such a car 30.
15 The terms and expressions which have been
employed in the foregoing specification are used therein
as terms of description and not of limitation, and there
is no intention, in the use of such terms and expres-
sions, of excluding equivalents of the features shown and
20 described or portions thereof, it being recognized that
the scope of the invention is defined and limited only by
the claims which follow.
