Multi-unit railroad car and railroad car trucks therefor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12570334-B2
Application number	US-202217954963-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 28, 2022
Priority date	Sep 28, 2022
Publication date	Mar 10, 2026
Grant date	Mar 10, 2026

Abstract

A symmetrical multi-unit railroad freight car, such as a 3-pack railroad intermodal well car, has body units that are connected symmetrically. The body units have a symmetrical arrangement of end trucks and shared trucks. The end trucks are 70 Ton Trucks. The shared trucks are 125 Ton trucks. The trucks have passive steering using geometric rocker stiffnesses. The rockers in the end trucks have a smaller radius of curvature than the rockers in the shared trucks. The spring groups in the shared trucks are stiffer than the spring groups in the end trucks. The spring groups in the end trucks have a different proportion of damping when empty, a shorter live load range of travel, and greater reserve travel than the shared trucks. The end trucks and the shared trucks have four-cornered damper groups that have the same sized damper wedges. The damper wedges have non-metallic wear pads.

First claim

We claim:

1 . A multi-unit articulated railroad freight car comprising:
a set of articulated car body units, said set of articulated car body units being carried upon a symmetrical arrangement of three-piece railroad car trucks; said set of articulated car body units including first, second and third car body units, said first car body unit being a first end unit of said multi-unit articulated railroad freight car; said second car body unit being an intermediate unit of said freight car; said third body unit being a second end unit of said freight car; said first car body unit having a first end and a second end; said first end of said first car body unit being connected to said second car body unit at a first shared truck; said second end of said first car body unit being distant from said first shared truck; and said second end of said first car body unit having a coupler operable to connect said multi-unit articulated railroad freight car to another freight car; said second end of said first car body unit being carried on a first end truck; said first shared truck having first and second spring groups; said first shared truck having first and second four-cornered damper groups; said first shared truck having rolling point contact rockers mounted at respective side frame to bearing adapter interfaces operable to permit said first shared truck to self-steer; said first end truck having first and second spring groups; said first end truck having first and second four-cornered damper groups; said first end truck having rolling point contact rockers mounted at respective side frame to bearing adapter interfaces operable to permit said first end truck to self-steer; said rolling point contact rockers of said shared truck having a first radius of curvature; said rolling point contact rockers of said end truck having a second radius of curvature; and said first radius of curvature being larger than said second radius of curvature.

2 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein:
said multi-unit articulated railroad freight car is a three-unit articulated railroad freight car;
said symmetrical arrangement of three-piece trucks including said first end truck, said first shared truck, a second shared truck, and a second end truck;
said second end unit being connected to said intermediate car body unit;
said second shared truck being located between said intermediate car body unit and said second end unit;
said second end truck being located under said second end unit at a location distant from said second shared truck;
said second shared truck being the same as said first shared truck; and
said second end truck being the same as said first end truck.

3 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein said multi-unit articulated railroad freight car is an intermodal well car.

4 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein the respective four-cornered damper groups of said first end truck and said first shared truck include four respective dampers, each of said four dampers having an alpha angle and a beta angle, two of said dampers being left-handed, and two of said dampers being right-handed.

5 . The multi-unit articulated freight car of claim 4 wherein said alpha angle and said beta angle of dampers of said first end truck are the same as said alpha angle and said beta angle of dampers of said first shared truck.

6 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 4 wherein each of said dampers has a respective friction face that bears against a side frame column, and is mounted on a respective damper spring, the damper spring having a line of action lying in a datum plane of the damper, the datum plane being normal to said respective friction face; and, when said multi-unit articulated railroad freight car is at rest on level track, said damper has a working point located further from said friction face than is said line of action.

7 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 6 wherein said friction face has a non-metallic friction pad mounted thereto.

8 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 6 wherein said damper has a hypotenuse face, said line of action of said damper spring meets said hypotenuse face at an intersection point, and said working point lies within an inch of said intersection point when said multi-unit articulated railroad freight car is at rest on level track.

9 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 6 wherein said respective damper has a hypotenuse face defining a working surface, said working surface has a spherical curvature, and said working point lies on said spherical curvature.

10 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 9 wherein said spherical curvature has a radius of curvature, and said radius of curvature is 20 inches, +5/−0.

11 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 9 wherein said dampers of said respective four-cornered damper arrangements of said first end truck have the same spherical curvature as said dampers of said respective four-cornered damper groups of said first shared truck.

12 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein said respective four-cornered damper group of said first end truck has the same damper geometry as the respective four-cornered damper group of said first shared truck.

13 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein said bearing adapters of said first end truck have respective ones of said rolling point contact rockers having a radius of curvature less than 45 inches.

14 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 13 wherein said radius of curvature of said bearing adapters of said first end truck is approximately 35 inches.

15 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 14 wherein said radius of curvature of said rolling contact rockers of said bearing adapters of said first shared truck are approximately 50 inches.

16 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein said bearing adapters of said first shared truck have respective ones of said rolling point contact rockers having a radius of curvature of said first shared truck is greater than 40 inches.

17 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein said first shared truck has a vertical spring rate k s ; said first end truck has a vertical spring rate k e , k s is greater than k e ; and k s is less than twice k e .

18 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein said first end truck is a 70 Ton truck and said first shared truck is a 125 Ton truck.

19 . The multi-unit articulated railroad freight car of claim 1 wherein said multi-unit freight car has a symmetrical arrangement of said car body units.

20 . A multi-unit articulated railroad freight car that has
a set of articulated railroad freight car body units mounted on a symmetrical set of end trucks and shared trucks; the shared trucks being of greater rated capacity than the end trucks; the end trucks and shared trucks having passive self-steering provided by rolling point contact rockers; the respective shared trucks and end trucks having four-cornered damper groups at each end of their respective truck bolsters, those damper groups having respective damper wedges that sit in bolster pockets and that engage those bolster pockets at a rolling point contact working poi

Assignees

• Nat Steel Car Ltd

Inventors

• Hematian Jamal
• Yan Zijian

Classifications

• B61F5/30

  Axle-boxes mounted for movement under spring control in vehicle or bogie underframes {(B61F5/36 takes precedence over B61F5/305 - B61F5/34)} · CPC title

• B61F3/125

  with more than one axle or wheel set · CPC title

• B61D3/10

  Articulated vehicles · CPC title

• B61F5/38 Primary

  Arrangements or devices for adjusting or allowing self- adjustment of wheel axles or bogies when rounding curves, e.g. sliding axles, swinging axles · CPC title