CA1299020C - Articulated lightweight piggyback railcar - Google Patents
Articulated lightweight piggyback railcarInfo
- Publication number
- CA1299020C CA1299020C CA000504415A CA504415A CA1299020C CA 1299020 C CA1299020 C CA 1299020C CA 000504415 A CA000504415 A CA 000504415A CA 504415 A CA504415 A CA 504415A CA 1299020 C CA1299020 C CA 1299020C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- center sill
- center
- railcar
- articulated
- truck
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Fee Related
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Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
An articulated railcar for transportation of highway trailers is lightweight and has a deck height which permits heavy highway trailers to be carried without exceeding the maximum allowable center of gravity height above the top of the rail. The railcar comprises a plurality of car bodies positioned end to end with articulated connections therebetween, each car body having a skeleton structure with a depressed center sill extending centrally for the length of the car body, the center sill having goose neck projections at each end, with the ends of the center sill at a higher elevation than the remainder of the center sill, end sills at each end of the center sill extending perpendicularly from each side of the center sill, the end sills adjoining the articulated connections, body side bearing pads located on the underside of each of the end sills, the body side bearing pads offset longitudinally from a plane representing the end of the center sill towards the adjoining articulated connection, a plurality of truck assemblies with wheels, the truck assemblies positioned below the articulated connections to support the adjoining ends of the car bodies and having truck side bearings located below the body side bearing pads, the articulated connections comprising connector means mounted on each of the truck assemblies for connecting the adjoining ends of the car bodies together, and for pivotally supporting the adjoining ends of the car bodies on each of the truck assemblies.
An articulated railcar for transportation of highway trailers is lightweight and has a deck height which permits heavy highway trailers to be carried without exceeding the maximum allowable center of gravity height above the top of the rail. The railcar comprises a plurality of car bodies positioned end to end with articulated connections therebetween, each car body having a skeleton structure with a depressed center sill extending centrally for the length of the car body, the center sill having goose neck projections at each end, with the ends of the center sill at a higher elevation than the remainder of the center sill, end sills at each end of the center sill extending perpendicularly from each side of the center sill, the end sills adjoining the articulated connections, body side bearing pads located on the underside of each of the end sills, the body side bearing pads offset longitudinally from a plane representing the end of the center sill towards the adjoining articulated connection, a plurality of truck assemblies with wheels, the truck assemblies positioned below the articulated connections to support the adjoining ends of the car bodies and having truck side bearings located below the body side bearing pads, the articulated connections comprising connector means mounted on each of the truck assemblies for connecting the adjoining ends of the car bodies together, and for pivotally supporting the adjoining ends of the car bodies on each of the truck assemblies.
Description
~z99o~o -ARTICULAT~D LIGHTWEIGHT PIG~YBACK RAILCAR
The present invention relates to an articulated railcar for the transportation of highway trailers. The railcar is lightweight and has a low deck height which permits heavy highway trailers to be carried without exceeding the maximum allowable center~of graYity height above the top of the rail.
Piggyback railcars wherein highway trailers sit on flat railcars, are used extensively on today's railways.
An existing flat car has a deck approximately 44 inches above the top of the rail. The combined krailer and railcar center of gravity has an accepted maximum level of 98 inches above the top of the rail, and in order to keep within this maximum level, there is a weight restriction on the trailer of approximately 70,000 lbs. Trailer weights in excess of this raise the combined center o~
gravity above the accepted maximum level.
The invention provides an articulated railcar comprising:
- a plurality of car bodies posit.ioned end to end with articulated connections therebetween, each car body having a skeleton structure with a depressed center sill extending centrally ~or the length of the car body, the center sill having goose neck projections at each end, with the ends of the center sill at a higher elevation than the remainder of the center sill;
- end sills at each end of the center sill extending perpendicularly from each side of the center sill, the end sills adjoining the articulated connections, body side bearing pads located on the underside of each of the end sills, the body side bearing pads offset longitudinally from a plane representing the end of the center sill towards the adjoining articulated connection, the end sills extendiny outwards on each side to ~acking positions located outside rails on which the railcar is supported;
,~
~z~g~o --2~
- a single double axle truck assembly including a bolster having a center pin thereon disposed between adjacent ends of car bodies, $he articulated connections including connector means on each end of each car body for engagement with the center pin on the adjacent truck assembly whereby each car body has a sinyle point suspension at each end thereof, truck side bearings on each said truck assembly, said truck side bearings being disposed beneath said body side bearing pads wlth a small gap therebetween whereby, when the car body tilts, the side bearing pad engages the truck side bearing to transfer the side loading directly to the truck assembly.
In one embodiment, the end sills have a gull wing shape extending from the center sill in an upward plane, and in an end plane towards the adjoining articulated connection. In a second embodiment, the end sills each comprise a straight web extending from each end of the center sill, the web having a top plate, and a bottom plate bent to meet the center sill bottom, and each of the body side bearing pads extend at an angle from beneath the bottom plate over the truck side bearings.
In another embodiment, the car bodies are adapted to support highway trailers and include a hitch assembly above one end of the center sill, and a trailer wheel platform supported on cross bearers attached to both sides of the center sill, the platform being below the top of the center sill. The hitch assembly is designed 1. ~
~99o~o so that it can be relocated with a minimum of shop work on the center sill to accomodate longer trailers. In another embodiment, three or five car bodies are joined toyether with articulated connections between the adjoining ends of the car bodies.
In a still further embodiment, the center sill comprises a welded box structure with a top plate having a greater sectional area than a bottom plate, such that the centroid of the center sill is located as close to coupling height of the railcar as possible.
In drawings which illustrate embodiments of the invention:
Fig. 1 shows a side view of an articulated rail according to one embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 2 shows a side view of a single car body, Fig. 3 shows a top plan view of the car body shown in Fig. 2.;
Fig. 4 shows an end view taken at line 4-4 of Fig. 2;
Fig. 5 shows a side sectional view taken at line 5-5 of Fig. 4 showing the side bearings at the end sills of adjacent car bodies;
Fig. 6 shows a partial plan view of another embodiment of an end sill;
Fig. 7 shows a partial end view of the end sill sho~n in Fig. 6;
Fig. 8 shows a partial section taken at line 8-8 of Fig. 6;
Fig. 9 shows a partial sectional view taken at line 9-9 of Fig. 2;
Fig. 10 shows a side view of a removable hitch assembly mounted on a car body;
Fig. 11 shows a partial side view of an articulated railcar showing another arrangement for a ~:99~21) hiyhway trailer.
An articulated railcar 10 i8 ~hown in Fig. 1 : having three car bodies 12 supporting three highway trailers 14. Whereas three car bodie~. 12 are shown herein, the preferred number of car bodies to make up a s~ngle articulated railcar 18 three or five. Center truck assemblies 16 are placed between the center car body 12 and the two exterior car bodie~ 12 with an articulated connec~ion 18 ~oining the sar bod~es 12 10 togetherO End truck~ 20 are positioned at the out~ide ends of the two exterior car bodie~ 12 supporting the ends o~ the car bodies 12 and having a ~tandard coupling 22 for connection to other railcars oe a locomotive.
Detall~ of one car body 12 are illu~trated in Figs. 2 to 6. ~ach car body 12 has a center sill 30 formed of a welded box frame extending in the center for the full length vf the car body. The center 8ill 3 0 ha8 goose neck projections 32 at each end sloping upwards to raised ends 34. The goose neck projections 32 provlde a 20 depressed or low ~lung center portion of the center 8ill . 30. The raised ends 34 of center 8ill8 30 on ad~acent - car bodies 12 are joined together at an articulated c~nnection 18 supported on a truck bolster 36 formed integral w~th the center truck assembly 16. The 25 articulated connect~on lB while not detailed herein, may be a connector device of the type wh~h includes convelltional male and female connector elements connected - ts) the . ~ame center pin. One type of connector device sultable for use in the pre~ent inventlon is that type 3~ manufactured by American Steel Foundries as ~hown in U.S~
Patent 3,716,146.
In the embodgment shown in Figs. 3 and 4, end 8i~ 40 extend perpendicularly from both sides of the raised ends 34 of the center ~ill 30. In the embodiment `~ 3LZ~9~020 shown in Yigs. 4 and 5, the end sills. 40 adjoining the articulated connectlon 18 each have a gull w~ng shape 42 ad~acent the rai~ed ends 34 of the center 8111 3 0. The gull wing shape 42 extends from the center 8ill 30 ln an upward plane and ln an end plane towards thP ad~olning artlcula~ed connection 18. The body side bearing pads 44 are offset on the underside of the end ~ills 40. Truck side bearing pads 45 are positioned directly under the body side bearing~ 44 and are mounted sn a slde beam 46 located on the truck bolster 36. A small gap i~ provided between the body side bearing pad~ 44 and the truck side bearings 45 which closes when the car body tilts or roll~
80 tha side loading ~8 transferred directly to the truck assembly 16. Jacking pads 48 are po~itioned at the end~
1~ f the end 8ill8 40 which extend out beyond the center truck assemblies 16 and permit jacking of the car body from out~ide the rail. The gull wing ~hape 42 of the end - 8ill8 40 are 80 shaped to avoid the wheels on the truck assemblies and to ald in reducing the he~ght of the center 8ill 30-In another embodiment, ~hown in Figs. 6, 7 and 8, the end sills 40 each have a vertical straight web 70 which extend~ perpendicularly out from the rai~ed end 34 of the center 8ill 30. A tapered top plate 72 i8 flat and attached to the web 7U~ The top plate 72 is wide . where it attaches to the top of the end 8ill 40 and narrow at the other end. A narrow th1ck bottom plate 74 i8 attached to the base of the web 70 and has a bend 76 . 80 that $t meets.and i~ welded to the bottom flan~e of .the end 8ill 34. An L-~haped stiffener 78 i~ welded to the under3ide of the top plate 72 and the web 70r and an angled L-shaped stiffener 80; also welded to the under~ide of the top plate 70, extends from the web 70 to the side of the end sill 34. Body side bearing pl~te~ 44 ~6-- .
.
are angled outwards from the end sill 40, attaahed to the under~ide of the bottom plate 7 4 and having gus~et plates 82 a~tached to the web 7û and underside of the top plate 72. This des~gn of end 8ill has a top surface which i~
5 substan~ially the same level as the top of the raised end~ 3 4 of the center ~ill 3 0.
AB can be seen in Fig. 9, the center 8ill 30 has a welded bog 8tructure with a heavier top plate 'chala bottom plate. Ths top plate in the embodiment shown i8 twl~e 10 the 'chickness of the bottom plate and has a greater - sectional area than the bottom plate. Thus the centroid oP the center 8ill 30 i8 as close to the coupling height of the railcar as possible in order to reduce bending stresses caused by eccentric axial loading.
A hltch assemb.~y 50 for a hlghway trailer 14 i~
positloned on one of the rai~ed ends 3 4 of the center '` 8ill 30. The hltch assembly 50 i8 arranged to match ~ith a king pln connectlon on the front of a highway trailer 14 as shown in Fig. 2. Cro~s bearers 52, as illu~trated in Fig. 9 e~tend from both sides of the depressed center portion of the center qill 30 and support a platfor~n 54 on each side of the center ~111 30 extending for a sufficient distance to support wheels 56 for differen.
. lengths and si~e~ of highway trailers lfi. In one ~mbodiment the platform 54 i8 26 inches above the top of the rail which i3 approximately 18 inches below the deck : of a typlcal flat carO
Th~ highway trailers are lifted onto the car . bod~es 12 by means of an overhead crane and removed ln the same manner. The trailer king pin is fitted to the hitch assembly 50 and locked in place. With the car plat~orm 54 below the top of the depre~sed center portion of the center ~ill 30, the center of gravity of the highway trailer i8 kept low, a~ short a distance as `-- 129902 . ' ..................... .
possible above ~he top of the raiL In one embodlment~
- highway trailers having a weight up to forty f~ve ton~
may be carried on a car body. Thls i8 consider~bly heavier than traller~ permitted on existing pi~gyback railcar~, which are generally restricted to weight~ of not more than thirty three ton8.
The hitch assembly 50 comprises a hitch plate 60 whlch ha~ a pivot connection 61 to a hitch frame 62. In the embodiment shown ln Fig. 10, the hitch frame 62 ha~ a bearing plate 63 which i~ mounted on the rai~d end 34 o~
the center 8ill 30 by mean~ of bolt~ or other such fastenlng dèv~ceR. By utllizing a removable hitch assembly 50, different locations may be provided on the . center 8ill for mountlng the a~sembly. Thus longer trailers may be mounted on each car.
Fig. 11 illustrates how extra long highway :trailers 14 can be carried on the arti~ulated railcar.
The hitch a~embly 50 at one end of one car body 12 supports one end of the trailer 14, and the tra~ler 2~ wheels 56 rest on a support platform S4 of the adjacent car body 12. It i8 necessary to turn the hitch plate 60 the other way around in the frame 62 by removing the .pivot connection 61 to allo~ the trailer klng pin to be mounted from the other . side. Wherea~ the support platform 54 . i8 shown to e~tend for a portion of the length of ~he car body 12, it may e~tend for the whole length, or any . portion of the length to accomodate variable . lengths of road trailers. Hitch aRsemblies 50 may be provided at both ends oP the car body 12 to take into account trailer mountings ~uch a~ tho~e ~hown in : Fig~. 1 and Pig. 6.
Variou~ change~ may be made to the embodlment ~hown hereln wlthout departing from the scope of the present invention whi~h i8 limited only by the following ~laim~.
, . . .
The present invention relates to an articulated railcar for the transportation of highway trailers. The railcar is lightweight and has a low deck height which permits heavy highway trailers to be carried without exceeding the maximum allowable center~of graYity height above the top of the rail.
Piggyback railcars wherein highway trailers sit on flat railcars, are used extensively on today's railways.
An existing flat car has a deck approximately 44 inches above the top of the rail. The combined krailer and railcar center of gravity has an accepted maximum level of 98 inches above the top of the rail, and in order to keep within this maximum level, there is a weight restriction on the trailer of approximately 70,000 lbs. Trailer weights in excess of this raise the combined center o~
gravity above the accepted maximum level.
The invention provides an articulated railcar comprising:
- a plurality of car bodies posit.ioned end to end with articulated connections therebetween, each car body having a skeleton structure with a depressed center sill extending centrally ~or the length of the car body, the center sill having goose neck projections at each end, with the ends of the center sill at a higher elevation than the remainder of the center sill;
- end sills at each end of the center sill extending perpendicularly from each side of the center sill, the end sills adjoining the articulated connections, body side bearing pads located on the underside of each of the end sills, the body side bearing pads offset longitudinally from a plane representing the end of the center sill towards the adjoining articulated connection, the end sills extendiny outwards on each side to ~acking positions located outside rails on which the railcar is supported;
,~
~z~g~o --2~
- a single double axle truck assembly including a bolster having a center pin thereon disposed between adjacent ends of car bodies, $he articulated connections including connector means on each end of each car body for engagement with the center pin on the adjacent truck assembly whereby each car body has a sinyle point suspension at each end thereof, truck side bearings on each said truck assembly, said truck side bearings being disposed beneath said body side bearing pads wlth a small gap therebetween whereby, when the car body tilts, the side bearing pad engages the truck side bearing to transfer the side loading directly to the truck assembly.
In one embodiment, the end sills have a gull wing shape extending from the center sill in an upward plane, and in an end plane towards the adjoining articulated connection. In a second embodiment, the end sills each comprise a straight web extending from each end of the center sill, the web having a top plate, and a bottom plate bent to meet the center sill bottom, and each of the body side bearing pads extend at an angle from beneath the bottom plate over the truck side bearings.
In another embodiment, the car bodies are adapted to support highway trailers and include a hitch assembly above one end of the center sill, and a trailer wheel platform supported on cross bearers attached to both sides of the center sill, the platform being below the top of the center sill. The hitch assembly is designed 1. ~
~99o~o so that it can be relocated with a minimum of shop work on the center sill to accomodate longer trailers. In another embodiment, three or five car bodies are joined toyether with articulated connections between the adjoining ends of the car bodies.
In a still further embodiment, the center sill comprises a welded box structure with a top plate having a greater sectional area than a bottom plate, such that the centroid of the center sill is located as close to coupling height of the railcar as possible.
In drawings which illustrate embodiments of the invention:
Fig. 1 shows a side view of an articulated rail according to one embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 2 shows a side view of a single car body, Fig. 3 shows a top plan view of the car body shown in Fig. 2.;
Fig. 4 shows an end view taken at line 4-4 of Fig. 2;
Fig. 5 shows a side sectional view taken at line 5-5 of Fig. 4 showing the side bearings at the end sills of adjacent car bodies;
Fig. 6 shows a partial plan view of another embodiment of an end sill;
Fig. 7 shows a partial end view of the end sill sho~n in Fig. 6;
Fig. 8 shows a partial section taken at line 8-8 of Fig. 6;
Fig. 9 shows a partial sectional view taken at line 9-9 of Fig. 2;
Fig. 10 shows a side view of a removable hitch assembly mounted on a car body;
Fig. 11 shows a partial side view of an articulated railcar showing another arrangement for a ~:99~21) hiyhway trailer.
An articulated railcar 10 i8 ~hown in Fig. 1 : having three car bodies 12 supporting three highway trailers 14. Whereas three car bodie~. 12 are shown herein, the preferred number of car bodies to make up a s~ngle articulated railcar 18 three or five. Center truck assemblies 16 are placed between the center car body 12 and the two exterior car bodie~ 12 with an articulated connec~ion 18 ~oining the sar bod~es 12 10 togetherO End truck~ 20 are positioned at the out~ide ends of the two exterior car bodie~ 12 supporting the ends o~ the car bodies 12 and having a ~tandard coupling 22 for connection to other railcars oe a locomotive.
Detall~ of one car body 12 are illu~trated in Figs. 2 to 6. ~ach car body 12 has a center sill 30 formed of a welded box frame extending in the center for the full length vf the car body. The center 8ill 3 0 ha8 goose neck projections 32 at each end sloping upwards to raised ends 34. The goose neck projections 32 provlde a 20 depressed or low ~lung center portion of the center 8ill . 30. The raised ends 34 of center 8ill8 30 on ad~acent - car bodies 12 are joined together at an articulated c~nnection 18 supported on a truck bolster 36 formed integral w~th the center truck assembly 16. The 25 articulated connect~on lB while not detailed herein, may be a connector device of the type wh~h includes convelltional male and female connector elements connected - ts) the . ~ame center pin. One type of connector device sultable for use in the pre~ent inventlon is that type 3~ manufactured by American Steel Foundries as ~hown in U.S~
Patent 3,716,146.
In the embodgment shown in Figs. 3 and 4, end 8i~ 40 extend perpendicularly from both sides of the raised ends 34 of the center ~ill 30. In the embodiment `~ 3LZ~9~020 shown in Yigs. 4 and 5, the end sills. 40 adjoining the articulated connectlon 18 each have a gull w~ng shape 42 ad~acent the rai~ed ends 34 of the center 8111 3 0. The gull wing shape 42 extends from the center 8ill 30 ln an upward plane and ln an end plane towards thP ad~olning artlcula~ed connection 18. The body side bearing pads 44 are offset on the underside of the end ~ills 40. Truck side bearing pads 45 are positioned directly under the body side bearing~ 44 and are mounted sn a slde beam 46 located on the truck bolster 36. A small gap i~ provided between the body side bearing pad~ 44 and the truck side bearings 45 which closes when the car body tilts or roll~
80 tha side loading ~8 transferred directly to the truck assembly 16. Jacking pads 48 are po~itioned at the end~
1~ f the end 8ill8 40 which extend out beyond the center truck assemblies 16 and permit jacking of the car body from out~ide the rail. The gull wing ~hape 42 of the end - 8ill8 40 are 80 shaped to avoid the wheels on the truck assemblies and to ald in reducing the he~ght of the center 8ill 30-In another embodiment, ~hown in Figs. 6, 7 and 8, the end sills 40 each have a vertical straight web 70 which extend~ perpendicularly out from the rai~ed end 34 of the center 8ill 30. A tapered top plate 72 i8 flat and attached to the web 7U~ The top plate 72 is wide . where it attaches to the top of the end 8ill 40 and narrow at the other end. A narrow th1ck bottom plate 74 i8 attached to the base of the web 70 and has a bend 76 . 80 that $t meets.and i~ welded to the bottom flan~e of .the end 8ill 34. An L-~haped stiffener 78 i~ welded to the under3ide of the top plate 72 and the web 70r and an angled L-shaped stiffener 80; also welded to the under~ide of the top plate 70, extends from the web 70 to the side of the end sill 34. Body side bearing pl~te~ 44 ~6-- .
.
are angled outwards from the end sill 40, attaahed to the under~ide of the bottom plate 7 4 and having gus~et plates 82 a~tached to the web 7û and underside of the top plate 72. This des~gn of end 8ill has a top surface which i~
5 substan~ially the same level as the top of the raised end~ 3 4 of the center ~ill 3 0.
AB can be seen in Fig. 9, the center 8ill 30 has a welded bog 8tructure with a heavier top plate 'chala bottom plate. Ths top plate in the embodiment shown i8 twl~e 10 the 'chickness of the bottom plate and has a greater - sectional area than the bottom plate. Thus the centroid oP the center 8ill 30 i8 as close to the coupling height of the railcar as possible in order to reduce bending stresses caused by eccentric axial loading.
A hltch assemb.~y 50 for a hlghway trailer 14 i~
positloned on one of the rai~ed ends 3 4 of the center '` 8ill 30. The hltch assembly 50 i8 arranged to match ~ith a king pln connectlon on the front of a highway trailer 14 as shown in Fig. 2. Cro~s bearers 52, as illu~trated in Fig. 9 e~tend from both sides of the depressed center portion of the center qill 30 and support a platfor~n 54 on each side of the center ~111 30 extending for a sufficient distance to support wheels 56 for differen.
. lengths and si~e~ of highway trailers lfi. In one ~mbodiment the platform 54 i8 26 inches above the top of the rail which i3 approximately 18 inches below the deck : of a typlcal flat carO
Th~ highway trailers are lifted onto the car . bod~es 12 by means of an overhead crane and removed ln the same manner. The trailer king pin is fitted to the hitch assembly 50 and locked in place. With the car plat~orm 54 below the top of the depre~sed center portion of the center ~ill 30, the center of gravity of the highway trailer i8 kept low, a~ short a distance as `-- 129902 . ' ..................... .
possible above ~he top of the raiL In one embodlment~
- highway trailers having a weight up to forty f~ve ton~
may be carried on a car body. Thls i8 consider~bly heavier than traller~ permitted on existing pi~gyback railcar~, which are generally restricted to weight~ of not more than thirty three ton8.
The hitch assembly 50 comprises a hitch plate 60 whlch ha~ a pivot connection 61 to a hitch frame 62. In the embodiment shown ln Fig. 10, the hitch frame 62 ha~ a bearing plate 63 which i~ mounted on the rai~d end 34 o~
the center 8ill 30 by mean~ of bolt~ or other such fastenlng dèv~ceR. By utllizing a removable hitch assembly 50, different locations may be provided on the . center 8ill for mountlng the a~sembly. Thus longer trailers may be mounted on each car.
Fig. 11 illustrates how extra long highway :trailers 14 can be carried on the arti~ulated railcar.
The hitch a~embly 50 at one end of one car body 12 supports one end of the trailer 14, and the tra~ler 2~ wheels 56 rest on a support platform S4 of the adjacent car body 12. It i8 necessary to turn the hitch plate 60 the other way around in the frame 62 by removing the .pivot connection 61 to allo~ the trailer klng pin to be mounted from the other . side. Wherea~ the support platform 54 . i8 shown to e~tend for a portion of the length of ~he car body 12, it may e~tend for the whole length, or any . portion of the length to accomodate variable . lengths of road trailers. Hitch aRsemblies 50 may be provided at both ends oP the car body 12 to take into account trailer mountings ~uch a~ tho~e ~hown in : Fig~. 1 and Pig. 6.
Variou~ change~ may be made to the embodlment ~hown hereln wlthout departing from the scope of the present invention whi~h i8 limited only by the following ~laim~.
, . . .
Claims (9)
1. An articulated railcar comprising:
- a plurality of car bodies positioned end to end with articulated connections therebetween, each car body having a skeleton structure with a depressed center sill extending centrally for the length of the car body, the center sill having goose neck projections at each end, with the ends of the center sill at a higher elevation than the remainder of the center sill;
- end sills at each end of the center sill extending perpendicularly from each side of the center sill the end sills adjoining the articulated connections, body side bearing pads located on the underside of each of the end sills, the body side bearing pads offset longitudinally from a plane representing the end of the center sill towards the adjoining articulated connection, the end sills extending outwards on each side to jacking positions located outside rails on which the railcar is supported;
- a single double axle truck assembly including a bolster having a center pin thereon disposed between adjacent ends of car bodies, the articulated connections including connector means on each end of each car body for engagement with the center pin on the adjacent truck assembly whereby each car body has a single point suspension at each end thereof, truck side bearings on each said truck assembly, said truck side bearings being disposed beneath said body side bearing pads with a small gap therebetween whereby, when the car body tilts, the side bearing pad engages the truck side bearing to transfer the side loading directly to the truck assembly.
- a plurality of car bodies positioned end to end with articulated connections therebetween, each car body having a skeleton structure with a depressed center sill extending centrally for the length of the car body, the center sill having goose neck projections at each end, with the ends of the center sill at a higher elevation than the remainder of the center sill;
- end sills at each end of the center sill extending perpendicularly from each side of the center sill the end sills adjoining the articulated connections, body side bearing pads located on the underside of each of the end sills, the body side bearing pads offset longitudinally from a plane representing the end of the center sill towards the adjoining articulated connection, the end sills extending outwards on each side to jacking positions located outside rails on which the railcar is supported;
- a single double axle truck assembly including a bolster having a center pin thereon disposed between adjacent ends of car bodies, the articulated connections including connector means on each end of each car body for engagement with the center pin on the adjacent truck assembly whereby each car body has a single point suspension at each end thereof, truck side bearings on each said truck assembly, said truck side bearings being disposed beneath said body side bearing pads with a small gap therebetween whereby, when the car body tilts, the side bearing pad engages the truck side bearing to transfer the side loading directly to the truck assembly.
2. The railcar according to claim 1, wherein the end sills each have a gull wing shape extending from the center sill in an upward plane, and in an end plane towards the adjoining articulated connection.
3. The railcar according to claim 1, wherein the end sills each comprise a straight web extending from each end of the center sill, the web having a top plate and a bottom plate bent to meet the center sill bottom, and each of the body side bearing pads extend at an angle from beneath the bottom plate over the truck side bearings.
4. The railcar according to claim 1, wherein the car bodies are adapted to support highway trailers and include a hitch assembly above one end of the center sill, and a trailer wheel platform supported on cross bearers attached to both sides of the center sill, the platform being below the top of the center sill.
5. The railcar according to claim 4, wherein the hitch assembly is removable and can be fitted to either end of the center sill.
6. The railcar according to claim 4, wherein the hitch assembly is removable and can be fitted to at least one predetermined location on the center sill.
7. The railcar according to claim 4, wherein a highway trailer is connected to the hitch assembly on one car body and the trailer wheel platform of the adjacent car body.
8. The railcar according to claim 4, wherein three or five car bodies are joined together with articulated connections between the adjoining ends of the car bodies.
9. The railcar according to claim 1, wherein the center sill comprises a welded box structure with a top plate having a greater sectional area than a bottom plate, such that the center sill has a centroid located as close to coupling height of the railcar as possible.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000504415A CA1299020C (en) | 1986-03-18 | 1986-03-18 | Articulated lightweight piggyback railcar |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000504415A CA1299020C (en) | 1986-03-18 | 1986-03-18 | Articulated lightweight piggyback railcar |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1299020C true CA1299020C (en) | 1992-04-21 |
Family
ID=4132698
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000504415A Expired - Fee Related CA1299020C (en) | 1986-03-18 | 1986-03-18 | Articulated lightweight piggyback railcar |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1299020C (en) |
-
1986
- 1986-03-18 CA CA000504415A patent/CA1299020C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKLA | Lapsed |