Rail car side bearing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11091179-B2
Application number	US-201816178232-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 1, 2018
Priority date	Nov 1, 2018
Publication date	Aug 17, 2021
Grant date	Aug 17, 2021

Abstract

In one aspect of the present disclosure, a side bearing is provided for supporting a body of a rail car. The side bearing includes a base for being mounted to a truck of the rail car, a support configured to contact the body of the rail car and move along a vertical axis relative to the base with movement of the body, and at least one resilient foam member configured to deform with movement of the support. The side bearing further includes at least one friction damping member configured to be urged in a direction transverse to the vertical axis against the base by the support and resist movement of the support relative to the base.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A side bearing for supporting a body of a rail car, the side bearing comprising:
a base for being mounted to a truck of the rail car;
a support configured to contact the body of the rail car and move along a vertical axis relative to the base with movement of the body;
at least one resilient foam member including a matrix of elastomeric material and air pockets therein, the at least one resilient foam member configured to deform with movement of the support;
at least one friction damping member configured to be urged in a direction transverse to the vertical axis against the base by the support and resist movement of the support relative to the base;
wherein the at least one resilient foam member imparts a reactionary force in response to deformation of the at least one resilient foam member from an initial configuration to a compressed configuration caused by movement of the support toward the base with rolling of the rail car body toward the side bearing, the deformation of the at least one resilient foam member from the initial configuration to the compressed configuration decreasing the size of the air pockets of the resilient foam member;
wherein the at least one resilient foam member imparts a restoring force in response to the at least one resilient foam member returning from the compressed configuration to a less compressed configuration caused by movement of the support away from the base with rolling of the rail car body away from the side bearing, the returning of the at least one resilient foam member from the compressed configuration to the less compressed configuration increasing the size of the air pockets; and
wherein the matrix of elastomeric material of the at least one resilient foam member provides internal hysteresis damping such that the restoring force is less than the reactionary force to limit the energy the at least one resilient foam member imparts to the rolling rail car body.

2. The side bearing of claim 1 wherein the support and the at least one friction damping member include a pair of engaged surfaces extending obliquely to the vertical axis.

3. The side bearing of claim 1 wherein the at least one friction damping member includes a pair of friction damping members that are configured to be urged in opposite directions against the base by the support.

4. The side bearing of claim 1 wherein the base includes at least one flat wall adjacent the resilient foam member and the at least one friction damping member is configured to slide along the at least one flat wall.

5. The side bearing of claim 1 wherein the at least one resilient foam member comprises microcellular urethane.

6. The side bearing of claim 1 wherein the at least one resilient foam member has a volume and the air pockets constitute approximately 30 percent to approximately 50 percent of the volume of the at least one resilient foam member.

7. The side bearing of claim 1 wherein the at least one resilient foam member has an open cell configuration that permits air to travel out of the air pockets as the resilient foam member deforms from the initial configuration to the compressed configuration.

8. A side bearing for supporting a body of a rail car, the side bearing comprising:
a base for being mounted to a truck of the rail car;
a support configured to contact the body of the rail car and move along a vertical axis relative to the base with movement of the body;
at least one resilient foam member configured to deform with movement of the support;
at least one friction damping member configured to be urged in a direction transverse to the vertical axis against the base by the support and resist movement of the support relative to the base; and
a damping body intermediate the support and the at least one resilient foam member, the damping body configured to urge the at least one friction damping member in the direction transverse to the vertical axis against the base.

9. The side bearing of claim 8 wherein the support is movable along the vertical axis between upper and lower positions and the at least one friction damping member and the damping body include a first pair of engaged surfaces extending obliquely to the vertical axis.

10. The side bearing of claim 9 wherein the support and the at least one friction damping member include a second pair of engaged surfaces extending obliquely to the vertical axis.

11. A side bearing for supporting a body of a rail car, the side bearing comprising:
a base for being mounted to a truck of the rail car;
a support configured to contact the body of the rail car and move along a vertical axis relative to the base with movement of the body;
at least one resilient foam member configured to deform with movement of the support;
at least one friction damping member configured to be urged in a direction transverse to the vertical axis against the base by the support and resist movement of the support relative to the base; and
wherein the at least one resilient foam member includes a pair of resilient foam members.

12. The side bearing of claim 11 wherein the base includes a center wall intermediate the pair of resilient foam members.

13. A side bearing for supporting a body of a rail car, the side bearing comprising:
a base for being mounted to a truck of the rail car;
a support configured to contact the body of the rail car and move along a vertical axis relative to the base with movement of the body;
at least one resilient foam member configured to deform with movement of the support;
at least one friction damping member configured to be urged in a direction transverse to the vertical axis against the base by the support and resist movement of the support relative to the base; and
wherein the at least one resilient foam member has an unloaded height and the at least one resilient foam member is resiliently compressible to at least seventy percent of the unloaded height.

14. A rail car comprising:
a rail car body;
a pair of trucks supporting the rail car body;
a pair of side bearings of each truck on opposite sides of the rail car body, each side bearing including:
a base;
a support configured to contact the rail car body and move along a vertical axis relative to the base with movement of the rail car body relative to the truck;
at least one resilient foam member arranged to deform with movement of the support;
at least one friction damping member configured to be urged in a direction transverse to the vertical axis against the base by the support and resist movement of the support relative to the base; and

wherein each side bearing includes a damping body intermediate the support and the at least one resilient foam member, the damping body configured to urge the at least one friction damping member in the direction transverse to the vertical axis against the base.

15. The rail car of claim 14 wherein the support and the at least one friction damping member include a pair of engaged surfaces extending obliquely to the vertical axis of the support.

16. The rail car of claim 14 wherein the at least one friction damping member and the damping body include a first pair of engaged surfaces extending obliquely to the vertical axis.

17. The rail car of claim 14 wherein the at least one friction damping member includes a pair of friction damping members that slide along the base and resist movement of the support relative to the base.

18. The rail car of claim 14 wherein the base includes at least one flat wall and the at least one friction damping member is configured to

Assignees

• Amsted Rail Co Inc

Inventors

• Harris Zachary B

Classifications

• B61F5/14 Primary

  Side bearings · CPC title

• B61F5/122

  with friction surfaces · CPC title

• B61F5/40

  Bogies with side frames mounted for longitudinal relative movements · CPC title

• B61F5/26

  Mounting or securing axle-boxes in vehicle or bogie underframes · CPC title

• B61F5/24

  Means for damping or minimising the canting, skewing, pitching, or plunging movements of the underframes · CPC title