Insulative railway boxcar

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9174656-B2
Application number	US-23442205-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 23, 2005
Priority date	Sep 23, 2005
Publication date	Nov 3, 2015
Grant date	Nov 3, 2015

Abstract

A freight car having insulative material interposed between inner and outer enclosures of the freight car.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A railway car comprising:
(a) a cargo-carrying container having an inner enclosure defining an inwardly directed surface against which cargo can bear and an outer enclosure defining an outwardly directed surface exposed to an ambient environment surrounding said boxcar; and
(b) a structural member having an inner portion supporting said inner enclosure where said inner portion has a self-bounded perimeter surface defining the volume of said inner portion, an outer portion supporting said outer enclosure where said outer portion has a self-bounded perimeter surface defining the volume of said outer portion and where the respective self-bounded perimeter surfaces of said inner portion and said outer portion are different and separated from each other in a direction transverse to a wall supported by at least one of said first portion and said second portion, respectively, and a thermally insulative spacer interposed between and secured to said inner portion and said outer portion; where
(c) said structural member is a one of:
(i) a side post;
(ii) a door post
(iii) a corner post;
(iv) a side sill; and
(v) an end sill.

2. The railway boxcar of claim 1 including a plurality of said structural members, each said structural member being a one of:
(a) a side post;
(b) a door post;
(c) a corner post;
(d) an end sill; and
(e) a side sill.

3. The railway boxcar of claim 1 wherein said cargo-carrying container defines a doorway and having at least one door post, said door post having an inner portion supporting said inner surface, an outer portion supporting said outer surface, and a thermally insulative spacer interposed between said inner portion and said outer portion, said spacer thermally isolating said inner portion from said outer portion.

4. The railway boxcar of claim 1 including insulative foam interposed between said inner enclosure and said outer enclosure.

5. The railway boxcar of claim 1 including a fastener that fastens said spacer to said inner portion and said outer portion, respectively.

6. The railway boxcar of claim 1 having a floor and an undercarriage including a center sill, plural cross bearers and cross ties oriented transversely with respect to said center sill, and an insulative spacer interposed between said floor and said center sill.

7. The railway boxcar of claim 6 including a floor including at least one longitudinal stringer and a respective composite spacer interposed between said at least one longitudinal stringer and a respective cross bearer or cross tie.

8. The railway boxcar of claim 1 where said insulative spacer thermally isolates said inner portion from said outer portion.

9. The railway boxcar of claim 1 including a roof having an upper member and a lower member isolated from each other by thermally insulative material.

10. In combination with a cargo-carrying enclosure of a railway car, a vertically-oriented load-bearing post comprising:
(a) an inner portion having a self-bounded perimeter surface defining the volume of said inner portion;
(b) an outer portion having a self-bounded perimeter surface defining the volume of said outer portion where the respective self-bounded perimeter surfaces of said inner portion and said outer portion are different and separated from each other in a direction transverse to a wall supported by at least one of said first portion and said second portion, respectively; and
(c) a thermally insulative spacer interposed between and secured to said inner portion and said outer portion.

11. The combination of claim 10 where said post is a side post.

12. The combination of claim 10 where said post is a door post.

13. The combination of claim 10 where said post is a corner post.

14. The combination of claim 10 including a horizontally oriented load-bearing sill comprising:
(a) an inner portion;
(b) an outer portion; and
(c) a thermally insulative spacer interposed between said inner portion and said outer portion.

15. The combination of claim 14 where said sill is an end sill.

16. The combination of claim 14 where said sill is a side sill.

17. The combination of claim 14 including a floor and an undercarriage including a center sill, plural cross bearers and cross ties oriented transversely with respect to said center sill, and an insulative spacer interposed between said floor and said center sill.

18. The combination of claim 17 including a floor including at least one longitudinal stringer and a respective composite spacer interposed between said at least one longitudinal stringer and a respective cross bearer or cross tie.

19. The combination of claim 10 including a roof having an upper member and a lower member isolated from each other by thermally insulative material.

20. A railway car having a cargo-carrying container comprising:
(a) a metal outer enclosure exposed to an ambient environment and a metal inner enclosure against which cargo can bear;
(b) a metal support assembly structurally interposed between and structurally supporting said outer enclosure and said inner enclosure; and
(c) a non-metallic insulative layer thermally isolating said inner enclosure from said outer enclosure, such that there is no metallic interconnection between said inner enclosure and said outer enclosure.

21. The railway car of claim 20 including a vertically-oriented load-bearing post comprising:
(a) a metal inner portion;
(b) a metal outer portion; and
(c) a thermally insulative spacer interposed between said inner portion and said outer portion.

22. The railway car of claim 21 including a fastener that fastens said inner portion, said outer portion, and said spacer together.

23. The railway car of claim 22 , said fastener comprising metal, and said railway car including at least one thermally insulative sleeve member interposed between said fastener and said inner portion and outer portion, respectively.

24. The railway car of claim 20 including a horizontally-oriented load-bearing sill comprising:
(a) an inner portion;
(b) an outer portion; and
(c) a thermally insulative spacer interposed between said inner portion and said outer portion.

25. The railway car of claim 20 including a floor, a center sill, and a thermally insulative spacer interposed between said center sill and said floor.

26. The railway car of claim 25 including at least one longitudinal stringer and a respective composite spacer interposed between said at least one longitudinal stringer and a respective cross bearer or cross tie.

27. The railway car of claim 20 including a doorway and at least one door post, said door post comprising:
(a) an inner portion;
(b) an outer portion; and
(c) a thermally insulative spacer interposed between said inner portion and said outer portion.

28. The railway boxcar of claim 20 including a roof having an upper member and a lower member isolated from each other by thermally insulative material.

29. The railway car of claim 20 including insulative foam between said inner enclosure and said outer enclosure.

Assignees

• Heitmeyer Kris
• Militaru Dan
• Gunderson Llc

Inventors

• Heitmeyer Kris
• Militaru Dan

Classifications

• B61D27/0027 Primary

  for freight cars; Isothermic wagons · CPC title

• B60P3/20

  Refrigerated goods vehicles (air treatment of goods space B60H; {air-conditioning means for freight cars, isothermic wagons B61D27/0027; superstructures for refrigerated goods vehicles B62D33/048}) · CPC title