| Class / Patent application number | Description | Number of patent applications / Date published |
|---|
| 105239000 | Dumping | 60 |
| 105240000 | Motor-operated doors | 5 |
| 20080236438 | RAILCAR WITH DISCHARGE CONTROL SYSTEM - A railcar with discharge control system is disclosed. In one embodiment, a railway car includes an underframe and at least one hopper for transporting lading. The railway car further including the underframe including a center sill which defines in part a longitudinal axis of the railway car. A discharge opening formed proximate to a lower portion of the hopper. A respective door assembly pivotally mounted adjacent to the discharge opening to control the flow of lading from the hopper. The door assembly operable for movement between a first, closed position and a second, open position relative to the discharge opening. A discharge control system operable to move the door assembly between the first position and the second position. The discharge control system operably moves generally longitudinally along the axis of the railway car to move the door assemblies between the first, closed position and the second, open position. | 10-02-2008 |
| 20100251922 | RAILROAD GONDOLA CAR STRUCTURE AND MECHANISM THEREFOR - A railroad gondola car has a hopper carried between two trucks. The hopper has convergent end and side slope sheets that feed a bottom discharge. The bottom discharge has a pair of longitudinal doors. The door closing mechanism is a mechanical transmission that includes a set of linkages running from the door to a reciprocating pneumatic cylinder. The linkages run generally parallel to the slope sheet. The car has a very short draft installation that includes a removable coupler carrier bar, and the main shear plate has a removable draft gear installation panel. There is a machinery space above the end section shear plate. It is overhung by the slope sheet that is substantially unobstructed by any other primary structure. The pneumatic cylinder is mounted on an angle in this unobstructed machinery space, oriented longitudinally over the draft sill beneath the main drag link of the mechanical transmission, and above the main pivot of the driving input lever of the transmission. The main lever is bifurcated, and straddles the pneumatic cylinder. The mechanism includes a primary lock in the form of an over center lever arrangement, and a compact secondary lock that acts sideways rather than lengthwise. The sidewalls of the car include vertical stiffeners and side sheets. The lower portion of the side sheets lies laterally inboard of the stiffener web, while the upper portion lies laterally outboard of the stiffener web. The side slope sheet of the hopper meets the sidewall at the transition of the sidewall sheet from the inside-the-post to the outside-the-post condition. | 10-07-2010 |
| 20110041724 | RAILROAD GONDOLA CAR STRUCTURE AND MECHANISM THEREFOR - A railroad gondola car has a hopper carried between two trucks. The hopper has convergent end and side slope sheets that feed a bottom discharge. The bottom discharge has a pair of longitudinal doors. The door closing mechanism is a mechanical transmission that includes a set of linkages running from the door to a reciprocating pneumatic cylinder. The linkages run generally parallel to the slope sheet. The car has a very short draft installation that includes a removable coupler carrier bar, and the main shear plate has a removable draft gear installation panel. There is a machinery space above the end section shear plate. It is overhung by the slope sheet that is substantially unobstructed by any other primary structure. The pneumatic cylinder is mounted on an angle in this unobstructed machinery space, oriented longitudinally over the draft sill beneath the main drag link of the mechanical transmission, and above the main pivot of the driving input lever of the transmission. The main lever is bifurcated, and straddles the pneumatic cylinder. The mechanism includes a primary lock in the form of an over center lever arrangement, and a compact secondary lock that acts sideways rather than lengthwise. The sidewalls of the car include vertical stiffeners and side sheets. The lower portion of the side sheets lies laterally inboard of the stiffener web, while the upper portion lies laterally outboard of the stiffener web. The side slope sheet of the hopper meets the sidewall at the transition of the sidewall sheet from the inside-the-post to the outside-the-post condition. | 02-24-2011 |
| 20130019776 | BALLAST HOPPER CAR - The present invention discloses a ballast hopper car, said ballast hopper car comprises an underframe, sidewalls, end walls, discharge doors, coupler draft gears, bogies, a bottom door opening and closing mechanism, underframe accessories, an air brake, an air control system, said air control system comprises an air reservoir and a discharge door control system, said discharge door control system is configured to control working states of ballast hopper car discharge doors. The ballast hopper car provided by the present invention improves discharging efficiency of ballast hopper car and reduces workload of operator. | 01-24-2013 |
| 20160101790 | RAILROAD CAR AND DOOR MECHANISM THEREFOR - A hopper car discharge outflow is controlled by closure members, at least one of which is movable. The doors are hingeless, being mounted on four bar linkages, such that the distal edge of the doors sweeps predominantly horizontally while the proximal edge of the door moves predominantly upwardly. The doors move through noncircular arcs, such that the size of the vertically projected door opening is abnormally large compared to the clearance heights of the door. The doors are driven by a longitudinal shaft that is mounted within the center sill. It drives a set of single input, double output bell cranks that drive adjacent pairs of doors, and that employs an over-center toggle to hold the doors in the closed position when the car is laded. The actuators may be mounted in shelters midway along the car, and may be offset from the centersill. The actuators may be mounted predominantly vertically such that gravity may obviate the need for a secondary lock. The doors of a transverse car need not all be of the same size. The over center may include a manual release having a fulcrum with a progressive decrease in mechanical advantage. | 04-14-2016 |
| 105241100 | Moving car dump | 3 |
| 105241200 | Actuated by means external to car | 3 |
| 20100005999 | Rail Car Door Closer - A rail car door closer is shown for hopper type rail cars used to carry bulk commodities or materials. Cylinders provide horizontal motion to rotate an axle on which cam closers are attached thereto. The cam closers operate between a relaxed position (down position) and a raised position (up position). During rotation of the cam closers from the relaxed position to the raised position, the cam closers push hopper doors under the rail car up to a latched position. Individual hopper doors can be closed, or multiple doors can be simultaneously closed, depending on the preference of the operator. The cylinders are protected from falling bulk commodities by an elongated tent frame structure. | 01-14-2010 |
| 20110185940 | Automated Railcar Gate Operating System - An automated trackside railed car discharge gate operating system is disclosed which can automatically unload a string of cars “on the fly” and without the need for a separate indexing system. The system includes a pair of carriage-mounted tool systems for opening/closing capstan-operated railcar gates disposed to travel along a carriage track and including visual devices that acquire and track capstans and coordinate tool orientation and operation. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110219981 | Automated Railcar Gate Operating System - An automated trackside railed car discharge gate operating system is disclosed which can automatically unload a string of cars “on the fly” and without the need for a separate indexing system. The system includes a pair of carriage-mounted tool systems for opening/closing capstan-operated railcar gates disposed to travel along a carriage track and including visual devices that acquire and track capstans and coordinate tool orientation and operation. | 09-15-2011 |
| 105247000 | Hopper type | 22 |
| 20090090268 | Hopper car having double-curved side walls - A hopper car having double-curved side walls for transporting bulk solids. The car has side walls, end walls, and a bottom which are all joined to present a container for transporting the bulk solids. The bottom presents at least one opening for discharge of the bulk solid. Each side wall presents upper and lower convex sections forming an indentation at approximately the vertical center of the side wall. | 04-09-2009 |
| 20120042804 | RAIL ROAD HOPPER CAR RIDGE FITTINGS - A hopper car discharge section may be wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. Outflow is controlled by movable closure members. The hopper car has a plurality of hoppers of which two hoppers share a common ridge assembly. The ridge assembly forms a common mating and fit up location for the upper margins of the slope sheets of two lengthwise adjacent hoppers. The ridge assembly includes an horizontal center section and two end plates that angle upwardly outboard toward the top chords of the sidewalls. The ridge assembly stands proud of the upper margin of the respective adjacent slope sheets. A gusset is mounted between the adjacent slope sheets below the ridge plate such that the slope sheets and gusset form a reinforcement tube running across the car, the end plates forming the stems of a vertical T-section attached to the sidewall and overlapping the top chord. | 02-23-2012 |
| 20120152146 | HATCH ASSEMBLY FOR A RAILCAR AND METHOD FOR ASSEMBLING THE SAME - A hatch assembly for use with a railway hopper car. The railway hopper car includes sidewalls, end walls, and bottom walls for defining an interior volume. The bottom walls define a cargo well that has an opening for discharging materials transported by the hopper car. The hatch assembly includes a support frame that is coupled proximate to a bottom of the cargo well. A hatch is slideably coupled to the support frame. The hatch is moveable between a closed position and an open position for selectively covering the cargo well opening. A hatch positioning system including a drive shaft that is coupled to the support frame, a locking assembly that is coupled to the drive shaft and is configured to selectively engage a locking bar, a positioning assembly that is coupled to the drive shaft, and a drive assembly that is coupled to the drive shaft. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20130032055 | Side Contoured Open Top Hopper Railcar with Biased Door Seal and Enlarged Contoured End Door - A railroad open top hopper car comprises a pair of spaced trucks supporting a railcar body, the body comprising a pair of side structures railcar, wherein each including (i) a top chord extending the side structure length, (ii) a plurality of upper side stakes extending from the top chord, (iii) an intermediate side chord extending the side structure length and below the top chord and coupled to the upper side stakes, (iv) a plurality of lower side stakes extending from the intermediate side chord, and (v) a side sill extending the length and below the intermediate side chord and coupled to the lower side stakes. The body forms discharge chutes forming pockets for the body with a plurality of intermediate doors and end doors, wherein the end doors are larger than the intermediate doors. Each door may include a biased door seal. | 02-07-2013 |
| 20140366770 | DISCHARGE ASSEMBLY WITH SEAL - A discharge assembly for a bulk materials rail wagon comprises a base incorporating at least one opening to allow gravity discharge of bulk material from the wagon, a closure member associated with the opening and movable to open and close the opening, and a seal to seal between the base and the closure member, the seal being removably mounted and accessible from an underside of the rail wagon. | 12-18-2014 |
| 20150360703 | SIDEWALL STRUCTURE OF HOPPER CAR - The present invention discloses a sidewall structure of a hopper car, including: an integrally formed upper side beam ( | 12-17-2015 |
| 20160001788 | BAFFLE - A baffle comprising a panel body that is mountable on a wall of a hopper adjacent to an edge of an outlet of a hopper and is arrangeable in a projecting position, to project in a generally downwardly direction beyond the edge of the outlet so as to restrict the spread of bulk commodities past the panel body as the bulk commodities discharge through the outlet. The panel body is arrangeable in the projected position to project in a generally downwardly direction beyond the edge of the outlet and between a gap space defined by the edge of the outlet and an outlet cover arranged in an open position. The baffle may comprise rotatable mounting means for rotatably mounting the panel body on the wall of the hopper such that the panel body is movable between the projected position and a retracted position, where the panel body is arranged so as to provide a minimal or no barrier effect. The baffle may comprise drive means to drive the panel body between the projected position and the extended position. The drive means may be self-actuating means and the self-actuating means are optionally configured to incite the rotation of the panel body between the projected position and the retracted position as the outlet cover moves between an open position and a closed position. The self-actuating means may comprise slidable coupling means for slidably coupling the panel body to the outlet cover and optionally the slidable coupling means comprise one or more low friction contact members mounted on a lower edge and/or side edge of the panel body and arranged in mating contact with the outlet cover. | 01-07-2016 |
| 105248000 | Multiple hopper | 9 |
| 20090090269 | Hopper car gate with enlarged discharge and increased capacity - A hopper car having an increased volume. The car has side walls, end walls, a bottom, and first and second sloping surfaces. The bottom lies at least partially in a horizontal plane and includes a plurality of spaced apart openings. The side walls, end walls, and horizontal plane define a volume X. The first and second sloping surfaces are located between adjacent openings and joined to the bottom adjacent the openings. The sloping surfaces extend upwardly from the bottom to present an inverted V enclosing a volume Y. The volume Y is no more than approximately 1 to 5% of the volume X. | 04-09-2009 |
| 20090120323 | HOLLOW RAILROAD CAR STRUCTURE - An hollow railroad car may be a have a lading containment structure that is a pressure vessel. The car may be a covered hopper car having one or more hopper discharge sections. Each hopper discharge section may include a transition from a substantially rectangular upper inlet to a substantially circular outlet. The transition may include developed plate formed as partial conic sections fitted as valleys between respective pairs of fore-and-aft slope sheets and side slope sheets. The car may have substantially planar internal ring reinforcement assemblies that serve to form a jig and a welding surface for the fore-and-aft slope sheet, a self-jig for the skins of the side wall and roof sheets, and which define buckling nodes for longitudinal compression of the car. The rings form local T-sections in combination with the adjacent wall skins, and do not employ out-of-plane formed sections such as hat sections. The reinforcement may be fabricated from flat sheet or flat bar. | 05-14-2009 |
| 20100132587 | RAIL ROAD HOPPER CAR RIDGE FITTINGS - A hopper car discharge section may be wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. Outflow is controlled by movable closure members. The hopper car has a plurality of hoppers of which two hoppers share a common ridge assembly. The ridge assembly forms a common mating and fit up location for the upper margins of the slope sheets of two lengthwise adjacent hoppers. The ridge assembly includes an horizontal center section and two end plates that angle upwardly outboard toward the top chords of the sidewalls. The ridge assembly stands proud of the upper margin of the respective adjacent slope sheets. A gusset is mounted between the adjacent slope sheets below the ridge plate such that the slope sheets and gusset form a reinforcement tube running across the car, the end plates forming the stems of a vertical T-section attached to the sidewall and overlapping the top chord. | 06-03-2010 |
| 20100319570 | RAIL ROAD HOPPER CAR STRUCTURE - A hopper car discharge section may be wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. Outflow is controlled by movable closure members. The hopper car has a plurality of hoppers of which two hoppers share a common ridge assembly. The ridge assembly forms a common mating and fit up location for the upper margins of the slope sheets of two lengthwise adjacent hoppers. The ridge assembly includes an horizontal center section and two end plates that angle upwardly outboard toward the top chords of the sidewalls. The ridge assembly stands proud of the upper margin of the respective adjacent slope sheets. A gusset is mounted between the adjacent slope sheets below the ridge plate such that the slope sheets and gusset form a reinforcement tube running across the car, the end plates forming the stems of a vertical T-section attached to the sidewall and overlapping the top chord. | 12-23-2010 |
| 20110179969 | Open Top Hopper Railcar with Lading Shedding Top Chord and Corner Cap and Integrated Door Operating Controls with Manual Override - A open top railcar comprises a pair of spaced trucks, a railcar body supported on the trucks, the body comprising a pair of side structures on opposed sides of the railcar and a pair of end structures on opposed ends of the railcar, and a top chord extending the length of the side structures and the width of the end structures, wherein the top chord includes an inwardly sloped top surface configured to discharge lading toward the interior of the railcar through gravity. The railcar may further include corner cap, or end cap members, with each corner cap, or end cap including inwardly sloped top surface configured to discharge lading toward the interior of the railcar through gravity. The railcar may be a hopper railcar having a plurality of discharge chutes forming pockets for the body which open to the interior with a plurality of door operated through a pneumatic door operating system and further including a manual door operating override for each door. The railcar may include a nonmetallic touch pad housing secured to the side structures and including a plurality of touch plates mounted in the housing configured for operating selective doors. | 07-28-2011 |
| 20120199042 | SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR A RAILCAR AND METHOD FOR ASSEMBLING THE SAME - A railway hopper car is provided. The railway hopper car includes an upper portion and a lower portion. The upper portion includes first and second sidewalls, and first and second end walls. The lower portion includes at least two cargo wells and a longitudinal boundary extending between the cargo wells. The upper and lower portions define an interior volume of the hopper car. The railway hopper car further includes a roof panel and a first support assembly. The roof panel includes an access opening extending longitudinally over at least a portion of the cargo wells. The first support assembly is coupled to an inner surface of the first sidewall, and extends between a top edge and a bottom edge of the first sidewall. The first support assembly is positioned proximate to the longitudinal boundary, and is configured to only partially extend into the interior volume of the hopper car. | 08-09-2012 |
| 20120285346 | RAILROAD CAR AND DOOR MECHANISM THEREFOR - A hopper car discharge outflow is controlled by closure members, at least one of which is movable. The doors are hingeless, being mounted on four bar linkages, such that the distal edge of the doors sweeps predominantly horizontally while the proximal edge of the door moves predominantly upwardly. The doors move through noncircular arcs, such that the size of the vertically projected door opening is abnormally large compared to the clearance heights of the door. The doors are driven by a transverse drive linkage that is driven by a transversely mounted actuator. The actuator is mounted in an accommodation in the lee of slope sheets between adjacent hoppers in a mid-span portion of the car. Drive from the actuator is carried to a pair of symmetrically mounted doors through drive train linkages. The drive train includes longitudinally extending torque tubes that transmit drive to both fore and aft ends of the door assemblies. The car also has a lost motion secondary lock system, an alternate manual drive door opening and closing drive train, and abnormally high side sills and a center sill that passes clear through the discharge sections at a height clearly lower than the upper margin of the discharge sections. | 11-15-2012 |
| 20150336591 | OPEN TOP HOPPER RAILCAR WITH BIASED DOOR SEAL AND ENLARGED CONTOURED END DOOR - A railroad open top hopper car comprises a pair of spaced trucks a railcar body, the body comprising a pair of side structures railcar, wherein each including (i) a top chord extending the side structure length, (ii) a plurality of upper side stakes extending from the top chord, (iii) an intermediate side chord extending the side structure length and below the top chord and coupled to the upper side stakes, (iv) a plurality of lower side stakes extending from the intermediate side chord, and (v) a side sill extending the length and below the intermediate side chord and coupled to the lower side stakes. The body forms discharge chutes forming pockets for the body with a plurality of intermediate doors and end doors, wherein the end doors are larger than the intermediate doors. Each door may include a biased door seal. | 11-26-2015 |
| 20160001787 | EQUIPMENT ENVELOPE FOR HOPPER WAGON - The present invention relates to an equipment envelope ( | 01-07-2016 |
| 105250000 | Longitudinal doors | 3 |
| 105251000 | Center-sill separator | 3 |
| 20140261068 | RAILROAD CAR AND DOOR MECHANISM THEREFOR - A railroad hopper car discharge outflow is controlled by closure members, at least one of which is movable. The closure members (or doors) are hingeless, being mounted on four bar linkages, such that the distal edge of the doors sweeps predominantly horizontally while the proximal edge of the door moves predominantly upwardly. The doors move through noncircular arcs, such that the size of the vertically projected door opening is abnormally large compared to the clearance heights of the door during opening and closing. The doors are driven by a transverse drive linkage that is driven by a transversely mounted actuator. The actuator may be mounted in an accommodation in the lee of slope sheets between adjacent hoppers in a mid-span portion of the car. Drive from the actuator is carried to a pair of symmetrically mounted doors through drive train linkages. | 09-18-2014 |
| 20140261069 | RAILROAD HOPPER CAR AND DOOR MECHANISM THEREFOR - A railroad hopper car discharge outflow is controlled by closure members, at least one of which is movable. The closure members (or doors) are hingeless, being mounted on four bar linkages, such that the distal edge of the doors sweeps predominantly horizontally while the proximal edge of the door moves predominantly upwardly. The doors move through noncircular arcs, such that the size of the vertically projected door opening is abnormally large compared to the clearance heights of the door during opening and closing. The doors are driven by a transverse drive linkage that is driven by a transversely mounted actuator. The actuator may be mounted in an accommodation in the lee of slope sheets between adjacent hoppers in a mid-span portion of the car. Drive from the actuator is carried to a pair of symmetrically mounted doors through drive train linkages. | 09-18-2014 |
| 20150114253 | RAILROAD HOPPER CAR AND DOOR MECHANISM THEREFOR - A railroad hopper car discharge outflow is controlled by closure members, at least one of which is movable. The closure members (or doors) are hingeless, being mounted on four bar linkages, such that the distal edge of the doors sweeps predominantly horizontally while the proximal edge of the door moves predominantly upwardly. The doors move through noncircular arcs, such that the size of the vertically projected door opening is abnormally large compared to the clearance heights of the door during opening and closing. The doors are driven by a transverse drive linkage that is driven by a transversely mounted actuator. The actuator may be mounted in an accommodation in the lee of slope sheets between adjacent hoppers in a mid-span portion of the car. Drive from the actuator is carried to a pair of symmetrically mounted doors through drive train linkages. | 04-30-2015 |
| 105253000 | Transverse doors | 3 |
| 20090007813 | Hopper car gate with opposed double doors - A hopper car gate with opposed double doors for discharging cargo from a hopper car. The gate has joined side walls and end walls which present top and bottom openings. A flange joined to the walls adjacent the top opening is adapted to be joined to the hopper car. A rail extends between opposite walls adjacent the bottom opening. First and second doors are supported on the rail. The doors are moveable in opposite directions between a closed position which blocks the bottom opening and an open position which allows the cargo to exit through the opening. | 01-08-2009 |
| 20100251923 | RAILROAD CAR AND DOOR MECHANISM THEREFOR - A hopper car discharge outflow is controlled by closure members, at least one of which is movable. The doors are hingeless, being mounted on four bar linkages, such that the distal edge of the doors sweeps predominantly horizontally while the proximal edge of the door moves predominantly upwardly. The doors move through noncircular arcs, such that the size of the vertically projected door opening is abnormally large compared to the clearance heights of the door. The doors are driven by a longitudinal shaft that is mounted within the center sill. It drives a set of single input, double output bell cranks that drive adjacent pairs of doors, and that employs an over-center toggle to hold the doors in the closed position when the car is laded. The actuators may be mounted in shelters midway along the car, and may be offset from the centersill. The actuators may be mounted predominantly vertically such that gravity may obviate the need for a secondary lock. The doors of a transverse car need not all be of the same size. The over center may include a manual release having a fulcrum with a progressive decrease in mechanical advantage. | 10-07-2010 |
| 20160137210 | RAIL ROAD HOPPER CAR RIDGE FITTINGS - A hopper car discharge section may be wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. Outflow is controlled by movable closure members. The hopper car has a plurality of hoppers of which two hoppers share a common ridge assembly. The ridge assembly forms a common mating and fit up location for the upper margins of the slope sheets of two lengthwise adjacent hoppers. The ridge assembly includes an horizontal center section and two end plates that angle upwardly outboard toward the top chords of the sidewalls. The ridge assembly stands proud of the upper margin of the respective adjacent slope sheets. A gusset is mounted between the adjacent slope sheets below the ridge plate such that the slope sheets and gusset form a reinforcement tube running across the car, the end plates forming the stems of a vertical T-section attached to the sidewall and overlapping the top chord. | 05-19-2016 |
| 105261100 | Tilting body | 2 |
| 20100218700 | SIDE DUMP AND BOTTOM DUMP RAILROAD CARS - A railroad car may comprise a frame comprising a first side and a second side laterally opposing each other. The railroad car may further comprise a first elastomeric mat and a second elastomeric mat supported by a plurality of reinforcement cables, the first and second elastomeric mats forming a load-carrying receptacle. Each elastomeric mat may have an outer edge and an inner edge, the inner edge of the first elastomeric mat abutting the inner edge of the second elastomeric mat when the load-carrying receptacle is in a closed configuration. The railroad car may further comprise a first pulley connected to the first side of the frame and a second pulley connected to the second side of the frame, the first pulley and second pulley each having a respective axis of rotation parallel to a direction of travel of the railroad car. | 09-02-2010 |
| 105264000 | Rolling tilt | 1 |
| 20150375760 | RAILROAD GONDOLA CAR STRUCTURE - A gondola car has a body for lading carried on an underframe. The underframe includes a center sill and cross-bearers. The car has deep side beams having top chords, side sills, and side sheets. The lower portion of the car includes tubs that seat between the cross-bearers. The car may have an internal volume of more than 8000 cu. ft. The car may have rotary dump claw sockets. The car has opposed internal and external stiffeners aligned at the longitudinal stations of the cross-bearers. The internal stiffeners may be triangular cantilevers extending upwardly inside the side sheets. The side sheet lies intermediate the stiffeners and their flanges. The top chords may be wider in cross-section than the side sills. The side sills may define torque tubes that co-operate with the sidewall stiffeners and the top chords to resist lateral deflection. The car may include a false deck, or dog-house at one end to accommodate the brake reservoir and brake valve, such that the car is longitudinally asymmetric. | 12-31-2015 |
| 105280000 | Doors | 13 |
| 20080223252 | HOPPER CAR WITH LADING DISLODGEMENT FITTINGS AND METHOD OF OPERATION - A hopper car discharge section may be wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. Outflow is controlled by closure members, at least one of which is movable. The closure members come together to a closed condition or position for retaining lading. When apart, in an open position or condition, lading may be discharged. A seal member or seal member assembly is mounted to one or both of the closure members. The closure member may have a lading discharge encouragement feature, which may be in the nature of a tine, or blade, or knife that extends upwardly through the throat of the discharge section. Movement of the door may tend to move the blade, thereby tending to dislodge lading that may be otherwise reluctant to move. | 09-18-2008 |
| 20110000395 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR SECURING A RAILCAR SANITARY COVER - An apparatus for securing a cover to a bottom outlet valve (BOV) of a railcar, where the apparatus has a bracket attached to the railcar proximate the BOV; a rod extending generally perpendicularly from the bracket; and a cantilevered arm extending from the rod near a distal end thereof, where the cantilevered arm is configured to support the cover. | 01-06-2011 |
| 20140158017 | OPEN TOP HOPPER RAILCAR WITH BIASED DOOR SEAL AND ENLARGED CONTOURED END DOOR - A railroad open top hopper car comprises a pair of spaced trucks a railcar body, the body comprising a pair of side structures railcar, wherein each including (i) a top chord extending the side structure length, (ii) a plurality of upper side stakes extending from the top chord, (iii) an intermediate side chord extending the side structure length and below the top chord and coupled to the upper side stakes, (iv) a plurality of lower side stakes extending from the intermediate side chord, and (v) a side sill extending the length and below the intermediate side chord and coupled to the lower side stakes. The body forms discharge chutes forming pockets for the body with a plurality of intermediate doors and end doors, wherein the end doors are larger than the intermediate doors. Each door may include a biased door seal. | 06-12-2014 |
| 20140261070 | Outlet Gate Assembly for Hopper Cars - An outlet gate assembly with a body, a discharge conduit having opposite ends defining discharge openings, an air flow conduit having an air flow opening adjacent each of the discharge openings and removable covers, each enclosing one of the discharge openings, and the adjacent air flow opening of the air flow conduit. The covers define a flow path between the discharge opening and adjacent air flow opening. In another form the air flow conduit from each air flow opening comprises a separate tube. Also a cover is disclosed for the discharge tube of an outlet gate for a railroad car that is vented to atmosphere. | 09-18-2014 |
| 20150096458 | DOOR SEALING ASSEMBLY FOR A RAILCAR AND METHOD OF ASSEMBLING THE SAME - A railcar door sealing assembly includes a first door seal member coupled to a first door plate of a first door of the railcar. The door sealing assembly also includes a second door seal member coupled to a second door plate of a second door of the railcar. The first door seal member at least partially overlaps with the second door seal member in a face-to-face relationship when the first door and the second door are in the closed position. | 04-09-2015 |
| 20160031454 | Connecting Rod Type Two-Level Locking Device, Hopper Car Bottom Door and Hopper Car - The present invention discloses a connecting rod type two-level locking device, a hopper car bottom door and a hopper car, and belongs to the technical field of rail wagons. The connecting rod type two-level locking device includes a transmission shaft, a door opening arm, a first roller, a second roller, a first locating pin, a standstill locking disk and a linkage mechanism. The hopper car bottom door includes the connecting rod type two-level locking device. The hopper car includes the bottom door. Even if the connecting rod type two-level locking device is accidentally stressed, the linkage mechanism cannot rotate, and at this time, the slave arm cannot rotate neither. The accidental opening of the hopper car bottom door can be avoided. The hopper car is more reliable to use. | 02-04-2016 |
| 105282100 | Sliding | 5 |
| 105282200 | Having resilient sealing gasket | 2 |
| 20130068127 | Low profile discharge gate assembly for a railroad hopper car - A low profile discharge gate assembly including a rigid frame defining a generally rectangular discharge opening and a gate slidably mounted on the frame for controlling discharge of commodity from the gate assembly. Structure carried by and extending inwardly from the frame is arranged between a lower surface on the gate and boot flanges defined by the gate assembly frame for restricting the flow of commodity from the gate assembly. A vertical distance of less than 7.5 inches separates the boot flanges from mounting flanges on the gate assembly frame whereby permitting a conventional unloading sled to fit under the gate assembly to discharge commodity therefrom. An operating shaft assembly selectively controls movement of the gate between open and closed positions. A lock assembly is also provided for inhibiting inadvertent movement of the gate from the closed position toward the open position. | 03-21-2013 |
| 20130068128 | LOW PROFILE DISCHARGE GATE ASSEMBLY FOR A RAILROAD HOPPER CAR - A low profile discharge gate assembly having a frame defining a discharge opening and including a gate slidably mounted on the frame for controlling the discharge of commodity through the gate assembly. Structure carried by and extending inwardly from three sides of the frame is arranged beneath a lower surface on the gate and boot flanges defined by the gate assembly frame further restrict the flow of commodity from the gate assembly. Less than 7.5 vertical inches separates a lower surface on the boot flanges from an upper surface on the mounting flanges of the gate assembly frame. An operating shaft assembly selectively controls movement of the gate between open an closed positions. Support structure further enhances rigidity and support for an end frame member through which the gate slidably moves. | 03-21-2013 |
| 105282300 | Driven by rack and pinion | 3 |
| 20090235840 | Hopper car gate with a curved door - A hopper car gate with a curved door for discharging cargo from a hopper car. The gate has coupled side walls and end walls which present a top opening, bottom opening, and upper surface surrounding the top opening and adapted to be joined to the hopper car. A curved rail extends between and is coupled with the end walls adjacent the bottom opening. A curved door is supported on the rail. The door is moveable between a closed position which blocks the bottom opening and an open position which allows the cargo to exit through the bottom opening. | 09-24-2009 |
| 20100107924 | Hopper Car Gate with a Laterally Opening Door - A hopper car gate for discharging cargo from a hopper car having a length greater than its width. The gate has opposed generally upright side walls and opposed generally upright end walls coupled with the side walls. The coupled walls present a top opening and a bottom opening. A first rail extends between and is coupled with the side walls adjacent the bottom opening. A first door is supported on the first rail and is moveable in a direction that is perpendicular to the length of the hopper car that the gate is joined with between a closed position which blocks the bottom opening and an open position which allows cargo to exit through the bottom opening. | 05-06-2010 |
| 20150298709 | RAILROAD HOPPER CAR DISCHARGE GATE ASSEMBLY AND RELATED METHOD FOR INFLUENCING GRAVITATIONAL DISCHARGE OF MATERIAL FROM A RAILROAD HOPPER CAR - A railcar gate assembly is arranged in material receiving relation relative to a hopper on the railcar and includes a slide gate movable between a closed position and an open position relative to a discharge opening for controlling the discharge of material from the hopper car. From an operational perspective, a first portion of the gate assembly is operably disposed above the slide gate and a second portion of the gate assembly is disposed below the slide gate. A boot adapter is releasably suspended below the discharge opening for influencing the discharge of material from the second portion of the gate assembly. A method for influencing gravitational discharge of material from a railroad hopper car is also disclosed. | 10-22-2015 |
| 105284000 | Link swing | 1 |
| 20140026781 | RAILROAD CAR AND DOOR MECHANISM THEREFOR - A hopper car discharge outflow is controlled by closure members, at least one of which is movable. The doors are hingeless, being mounted on four bar linkages, such that the distal edge of the doors sweeps predominantly horizontally while the proximal edge of the door moves predominantly upwardly. The doors move through noncircular arcs, such that the size of the vertically projected door opening is abnormally large compared to the clearance heights of the door. The doors are driven by a longitudinal shaft that is mounted within the center sill. It drives a set of single input, double output bell cranks that drive adjacent pairs of doors, and that employs an over-center toggle to hold the doors in the closed position when the car is laded. The actuators may be mounted in shelters midway along the car, and may be offset from the centersill. The actuators may be mounted predominantly vertically such that gravity may obviate the need for a secondary lock. The doors of a transverse car need not all be of the same size. The over center may include a manual release having a fulcrum with a progressive decrease in mechanical advantage. | 01-30-2014 |
| 105285000 | Buffers | 1 |
| 20120210906 | Apparatus for controlling discharge of material from a railroad hopper car - An apparatus for controlling the discharge of materials from a railcar having a hopper carried on a mobile frame. The hopper defines a longitudinally disposed discharge opening. The railcar has a door pivotally mounted for movement between an open position and a closed position relative to the discharge opening. The apparatus for controlling the discharge of materials from the railcar includes an operating shaft and a drive operably coupled between the door and the operating shaft for causing the door to move from the closed position toward the open position in response to rotation of the operating shaft. The drive also includes a lost motion connection for protecting the operating shaft as the door freely pivots toward the open position during collapsing movement of the lost motion connection and after the operating shaft has been rotated a predetermined amount to open the door. | 08-23-2012 |
| 105286000 | Door actuators | 11 |
| 20080276828 | Railway car door operator assembly - A railway car door operator assembly is adapted for use in opening or closing railway car doors. The assembly is mountable on a self-propelled vehicle and includes a base mountable on the vehicle. An elongated arm having one end secured to an articulated joint on the base secures the arm to the base limiting movement of the arm to movement in a substantially horizontal plane. Another end of the arm is secured to a releasable restraint for releasable connection to a railway car door. | 11-13-2008 |
| 20100132588 | CONTROL VALVE ASSEMBLY FOR LOAD CARRYING VEHICLES - A control valve assembly for a load carrying vehicle that includes a storage space and a dumping mechanism that is movable between an open position that allows access to the storage space and a closed position that inhibits access to the storage space. The control valve assembly includes a housing and a valve that is positioned within the housing and is movable between a first position, wherein the dumping mechanism is moved toward the open position, and a second position, wherein the dumping mechanism is moved toward the closed position. First, second, and third actuation systems are in communication with the valve and are operable to actuate the valve between the first position and the second position. | 06-03-2010 |
| 20100251924 | RAILCAR UNLOADING SYSTEM - A system for unloading a railcar includes an imaging system for generating a model of features of the railcar as the railcar enters an unloading station, and an actuation device in communication with the imaging system for identifying a capstan using model information and engaging the capstans to cause the discharge of material from the railcar. | 10-07-2010 |
| 20130233199 | Hopper Car Gate Assembly with a Door Having Vertically Spaced Sections - A hopper car gate assembly having a frame with opposed side walls, opposed end walls, and top and bottom openings. The gate assembly has a door with a lower section that is supported by the frame and an upper section that is vertically spaced from the lower section. The door is moveable between a closed position, in which the lower section blocks the bottom opening, and an open position, in which cargo can exit through the bottom opening. A drive mechanism engages the upper section of the door to move the door between its closed and open positions. Preferably, the door has a middle section that is joined to and extends upward from the lower section, and the upper section is joined to and extends away from the middle section. | 09-12-2013 |
| 20130291760 | HOPPER GATE OPENER - A rail car hopper gate opener is presented attached to a moving vehicle. A mechanized gate opener is attached to one end of the vehicle. The gate opener is attached in such as manner as to allow the gate opener to rise and fall with respect to the vehicle, to rotate with respect to the vehicle, to extend away and retract back toward the vehicle, and to pivot on a hinge on the vehicle attachment point. | 11-07-2013 |
| 20140216299 | BOTTOM DOOR OPENING-CLOSING MECHANISM, BOTTOM DOOR DEVICE AND DROP-BOTTOM HOPPER CAR - A bottom door opening-closing mechanism includes a first connecting rod, a second connecting rod, a swing rod, a bottom door opening-closing drive cylinder and a transmission shaft. The swing rod is hinged to the second connecting rod and the piston rod of the bottom door opening-closing drive cylinder. One end of the first connecting rod is hinged to the second connecting rod, and the transmission shaft is connected to the second connecting rod. The cylinder body of the bottom door opening-closing drive cylinder is fixedly connected with a first locking hook, and the swing rod is fixedly connected with a second locking hook which can be caught by the first locking hook. A bottom door device and a drop-bottom hopper car are further provided. In the present invention, the first locking hook and the second locking hook are caught with each other to achieve a secondary locking. Such an arrangement has some advantages such as a simple structure and low manufacture and maintenance costs. Further, a secondary locking may be achieved while closing the bottom door only by controlling the bottom door opening-closing drive cylinder, so that the complexity of the control system is reduced. | 08-07-2014 |
| 20150096459 | DOOR AND DOOR OPERATING ASSEMBLY FOR A RAILCAR AND METHOD OF ASSEMBLING THE SAME - A door operating assembly for a railcar includes an actuating device. The railcar includes a railcar container and a lower portion coupled to the railcar container. The railcar container includes two opposing sidewalls and at least one door coupled to the lower portion. The railcar defines a longitudinal axis extending therethrough. The door operating assembly also includes at least one door operating mechanism coupled to the actuating device. At least a portion of the at least one door operating mechanism extends longitudinally along one sidewall of the two opposing sidewalls. The door operating assembly further includes at least one axial drive member coupled to the at least one door operating mechanism. The door operating assembly also includes at least one door drive assembly coupled to the at least one axial drive member. The at least one door drive assembly is coupled to the at least one door. | 04-09-2015 |
| 105288000 | Multiple door | 2 |
| 20100258030 | Rail Car Door Closer System with Wing Closers - An improved rail car door closer system is provided wherein the movement of a number of appropriately positioned closer wing plates into contact with a number of open rail car hopper doors, is accomplished with hydraulic cylinders and motors. The system incorporates components that direct both the rotation of the wing closers (around a cylindrical frame so as to position the wing closers in and out of position for door closure), and the translation of the wing closers (along the longitudinal cylindrical frame so as to effect the actual closing of the hopper doors). The system is arranged to close more than one door at a time and in the preferred embodiment includes three simultaneously operated door closer wing structures. The heavy duty cylindrical frame incorporates a number of cylindrical outer segments sized to fit around and on the inner cylindrical frame. The segments are directed to rotate and translate on the inner cylindrical frame. Heavy duty coil springs are used to link the movable outer segments, one to the other, and to serve as force dampening structures during operation of the system. A double acting hydraulic cylinder is arranged to direct the translational movement of the closer wings while a low speed hydraulic motor is used to direct their rotational movement. The system may operate manually through the use of a number of hydraulic valves or may be operated semi-automatically through a programmed sequence of closer wing movements. | 10-14-2010 |
| 105289000 | Interconnected | 1 |
| 105290000 | Links | 1 |
| 20130160670 | Open Top Hopper Railcar with Lading Shedding Top Chord and Corner Cap and Integrated Door Operating Controls with Manual Override - A open top railcar comprises a railcar body supported on the spaced trucks, the body comprising side and end structures on the railcar, and a top chord extending the length of the side structures and the width of the end structures, wherein the top chord includes an inwardly sloped top surface for discharging lading toward the railcar interior. The railcar may further include corner cap, or end cap members, including inwardly sloped lading discharging top surfaces. The railcar may be a hopper railcar having discharge chutes forming body pockets opening into the interior with pneumatic doors having manual override for each door. The railcar may include a nonmetallic touch pad housing secured to the side structures and including a plurality of touch plates mounted in the housing configured for operating selective individual doors and combination of doors. | 06-27-2013 |
| 105296000 | Crank shaft | 1 |
| 20150353102 | Two-Level Locking Device, Hopper Car Bottom Door and Hopper Car - The present invention discloses a two-level locking device, a hopper car bottom door and a hopper car. The device includes a first transmission shaft, a second transmission shaft, a clutch, a pressure mechanism and a reset mechanism, wherein under the pressure action of the pressure mechanism, the clutch separates the first transmission shaft from the second transmission shaft, and under the action of the reset mechanism, the clutch joints the first transmission shaft with the second transmission shaft. The bottom door includes the device. The hopper car includes the bottom door. By adopting the device, when the clutch is accidently separated by the pressure action of the pressure mechanism, the reset mechanism can re-joint the clutch to prevent the accidental rotation of the first transmission shaft and the second transmission shaft. By adopting the bottom door, the hopper car bottom door opened and closed by a planar four-bar linkage passing a dead point is more reliable to use. The hopper car is more reliable to use. | 12-10-2015 |
| 105307000 | Screw or worm | 1 |
| 20100275811 | HOPPER CARS WITH ONE OR MORE DISCHARGE CONTROL SYSTEMS - Hopper cars both open and covered and discharge control systems are disclosed. Each hopper car may include at least one hopper and a center sill which defines in part a longitudinal axis of the hopper car. At least one discharge opening may be formed proximate a lower portion of each hopper. A respective door assembly may be pivotally mounted adjacent to each discharge opening to control the flow of lading from the respective discharge opening. Each discharge control system may include a common linkage and associated secondary linkages operable to move associated door assemblies between a first position and a second position. A power source including a motor, an air cylinder or a hydraulic cylinder may be disposed on the railway car to move the common linkage. For other hopper cars a wayside drive system may be releasably engaged with a capstan operable coupled to the common linkage. | 11-04-2010 |
| 105308100 | Having door latch | 1 |
| 105310100 | Bolt pivoted about axis parallel to door plane | 1 |
| 20100251925 | Dual Stage Railroad Hopper Car Door Actuating Mechanism - A mechanism for controlling opening of doors on a hopper car underside. The mechanism includes a pair of stationary hook assemblies located outboard of a discharge opening and having a proximal end affixed to the hopper car and a distal free end. Each hook assembly includes a locking cavity bounded by a cam locking surface and a distal slide surface. Included also is a pair of locking cam assemblies having an upper and lower cam surface matable with the hook cam locking assembly and having a slot. An elongate member has ends affixed to the pair of locking cam assemblies and extends through each of the annular end bearings. A pair of annular end bearings is disposed adjacent to the locking cam assemblies and each affixed to a door. | 10-07-2010 |
| 105311100 | Control | 3 |
| 20090078151 | Railcar door control apparatus - An apparatus for controlling discharge of commodity from a railcar having a hopper with at least two transversely spaced discharge openings and two laterally spaced and commonly joined pivotal doors arranged in registry with the two discharge openings. The control apparatus includes a transversely extending operating shaft and a linkage system operably connecting the operating shaft to the doors. A drive mechanism is operably connectable to the linkage system. The drive mechanism includes a powered driver for selectively operating the linkage mechanism to either simultaneously move the doors into their closed position or to simultaneously move the doors from their closed position. The powered driver of the drive mechanism is operably connected to a lever radially extending from the operating shaft. To releasably hold and maintain the doors in their closed position, a lock assembly is arranged in operable combination with the driver. The lock assembly can be operated in response to powered or manual movement of the doors. An indicator is also provided for providing a visual indication, from a side of the car, the operable condition of the lock assembly. | 03-26-2009 |
| 20100107925 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR APPLYING RAILWAY BALLAST - A method and apparatus for spreading ballast along railways makes use of an inertial measurement system to determine where to apply ballast from a hopper car. A variety of techniques can be used to determine the location and speed of the ballast spreading train, including manual or automated visual techniques, laser technology, radar technology, radio frequency transponders, magnetic sensor, thermal imaging and aerial photogrammetry. The invention also contemplates “on the fly” surveys and terrain profiling using lasers or radar. | 05-06-2010 |
| 20130000509 | BALLAST HOPPER CAR DISCHARGE DOOR CONTROL SYSTEM - The present invention discloses a ballast hopper car discharge door control system, comprising a control box, said control box comprises electrical pneumatic control system and receiving device; hydraulic system, connected to electrical pneumatic control system; manual control device and remote control device are operated to control opening or closing of ballast hopper car discharge doors; storage battery, configured to provide electrical pneumatic control system in said control box with continuous power supply and remote control device with charging power supply; pressure switch, arranged between control box and storage battery, said pressure switch is operated by pressure of air source to control connecting and disconnecting between storage battery and control box. The ballast hopper car discharge door control system provided by the present invention prevents false on-site operation of discharge door, thus prevents unexpected operation, improves discharging efficiency of ballast hopper car and reduces workload of operator. | 01-03-2013 |
