US2562448A - Railway car end arrangment - Google Patents

Description

W. B. DEAN ETAL RAILWAY CAR END ARRANGEMENT July 31, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 2, 1945 lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll l|| INVENTOS: 'WaZier B.Dean, kaymon d J. Theriault 'ATTORJVEY 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 w. B; DEAN ETAL RAILWAY CAR END ARRANGEMENT July 31, 1951 Filed Oct. 2, 1945 INVENTORS Walter B.Decm, Raymond J. Tnerzault. BY

4% ATTORNEY July 31, 1951 w. B.- DE-AN ETAL RAILWAY CAR END ARRANGEMENT 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Oct. 2, 1945 uvvroas 4 Walter 13. Dean, Raymond .1 Them'agult ATTOE Juiy 31,1951 w. B. DEAN ETAL 2,562,448

RAILWAY CAR END ARRANGEMENT Filed Oct. 2, 1945 4 Sheets- Sheet 4 The invention relates Patented July 31, 1951 UNITED. STATES PATENT oFFrcE RAILWAY CAR END ARRANGEMENT Walter B. Dean, Narberth, and Raymond J. Theriault, Glenside, Pa., assignors to TheBudd Company, Philadelphia,'Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application October 2, 1945, Serial No. 619,826

'7 Claims. (01. 10510) to railway cars, and particularly to the end construction of such cars as provide a central passageway between coupled cars;

The cars to which the invention relates are usually equipped with a combined buifer and face plate having a fiat face surrounding a doorway opening therein and engaging, when two such cars are in coupled relation, a corresponding face plate of the adjoining coupled car. The face plates of the adjoining coupled cars are normally yieldingly urged outwardly to engage each other through their fiat faces with considerable force, particularly in their lower regions, and they are preferably supported for limited yieldingly restrained universal movement with respect to the adjacent car body ends.

When the car couplers are in tension, i. e. subject to draft forces, the resilient draft gear usually provided allows the coupled car ends to separate slightly, but such separation is not sulficient to allow the face plates, urged outwardly by resilient means under considerable compression when the cars are coupled, to separate from each other. When the couplers are in heavy compression as happens under heavy forces in buff, the face plates are forced together with increased pressure and there results therefore a strong frictional resistance to relative lateral 'or vertical movement of the two face plates under such pressure engagement. I

It is desirable to have the face plates of adjoining coupled cars move together under small relative vertical or lateral movements of the coupled car body ends, in order to avoid the grating noise and wear produced by the sliding of the flat faces of the plates on each other. Such relative movements of the car body ends "occur wherever there are slight irregularities in the tracks even on straightaway tracks and on curves, dips or rises in the track. To eifect such movement together, the face plates are so yieldingly mounted on the car body ends that they have limited resiliently restrained. movement,

both laterally and vertically, as well as the usual 'in and out and angular movement, the latter in particular taking place when the coupled cars are rounding a curve in the track.

To allow excessive such movement of the face plates is not desirable because, among other things, it unnecessarily complicates the mounting of the face plates and increases the overall weight of the cars. Since the tendency to excessive such movement between car body ends is however encountered under certain conditions of operation,

v2---2 of Fig. 1, through the adjacent ends of two coupled cars showing the relative positions of the parts under normal straightaway operating .and side doorway and the other without.

such slight degrees of movement, but if excessive movement tends to occur, then theface plates are solidly engaged with their adjacent car ends to prevent such excessive relative movement.

It is an object of the invention to provide a car end construction of this class which allows the desirable limited universal movement of the face plate opposed by yielding restraining means, but which provides a positive stop to prevent such excessive movement as might result in injuring the parts yieldingly restraining the faceplate.

It is a further object of the invention to provide for such yieldingly restrained vertical and lateral and angular movement of the face plate, but in which there is provided simple means for normally yieldingly holding the face plate central 'or for returning it to-central position when displaced therefrom.

. Other and further objects and advantages and the manner inwhich they are attained will become apparent from the following detailed description when read in connection with the drawings forming a part hereof.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is an end elevational ,view of a railway car equipped with the invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal sectional view, taken substantially along the line conditions, one carbeing shown with a vestibule Fig. 3 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 2, the section in this case beingjtaken substantially along a plane indicated by the line .3-3 of Fig. 1, the parts being shown inthe relative positions which they normally occupy in rounding a curve in the track. I I i Figs. 4 and 5 are fragmentary vertical sectional 'views taken, respectively, substantially alongthe lines 4-4 and 55 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view taken substantially along the line 66 of Figs. 2 and 3.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary side elevational view on a reduced scale showing the support of the diaphragm face plate from the car end wall, parts being broken away and shown .inisection.

In the-drawings the invention is shown'applied to a railway car having a side wall and underframe construction generally similar to that disclosed in copending applications Serial .No. 585,899, filed March 31, 1945, now "Patent No. 2,504,659 issued April 18, 1950, and'serial No. 588,866, filed April 17, 1945, :now sBatent .No. 2,504,113 issued April 18, 1950, respectively, but the specific side wall and underframe construction has no necessary relation to the invention except as modified to incorporate the features of the invention, and it will be understood that the showin is merely illustrative of one form of cartbody *cons'tru'ctiondzo which thez invention may be applied.

The c'ar 'body may :comprise the end wall 10, connected iat:sicles and 'top to the side walls -ll .and ;.the roof and at-the bottom to thecar body undierirame 42. .The .transverse'endmember of ltheunder-frame may comprise a sill casting l3 lrigidlyrsecured, to ia center sill structure H as iby.;horizontal weld lines, indicated 'at [5, Fig. 3, and vertical weld lines indicated at i6, Fig. -3. The center sill has spaced vertical side walls l1, :1?! welded at 16, to-the vertical web l8, l8, of atheend sill casting I3. It :has upper and lower {horizontal bracing webs l9 and which are (secured to the end sillcasting :by horizontal weld lines, ,as 15.

",wBetween the side walls :I'I, H is disposed a usual :form of yielding buffer 2| acted on by the central buffer stem -22' guided in the end sill casting and, projecting beyond its outer face 23. on oppositesides-of thelbuffer stem are arranged =a.-pairof hollow-projections or bosses, 14, 24, generally annular incrosssection-but of less vertical than lateral dimension, and tapering toward their :outer ends, the projections also-extending beyond the outer face .23-of the endsill casting .for a ,purpose to be, hereinafter described.

jI hese projections are disposed in longitudinal alignment with the yertical webs l8, l8 which are bifurcated at their ends to brace thebases of'the .-projections. Laterally of .the bosses or projections-2 4, thecastingis formed withdongi- .tudinal-openings.2'5, 25 which loosely receive the ,sidesstemsis, 26 =therethrouh.

The center stem is urged outwardly 'by the usual bulfer spring (not shown) and has abutting engagement with the .transverse'bu'ffer casting 21 forming the lower transverse member of the face plate assembly, generally designated 28. Theside stems 26, 25 are hinged at their outer ends at "29, 29,1to the buffer casting 21 "and at their"'inner "ends they extend loosely through "bracketsill, 30 s'ecuredto the respective side walls -Fl, 'H and upper bracing webs l9, 19 of the center sill. 'They are constantly urged -outwar'dly *by the coil springs 3|, 3| reacting againstshoulders 32, 32, and the respective brackets 30, 30.

The side stems, :as clearly appears, in Fig. 3, have substantial clearance between them and -the-respective"openings :25 in theend sill casting, to permit limited movement both vertically "and horizontally between their outer ends and the endsillcasting. -To.-.facilitate thisswinging movement of the sidestems, the brackets 30, 30 are provided with re-entrant ball 'faced seats 36,

36 for cooperation with similar bosses on washers 33, 33, interposed between the springs 3|, 3i and the respective brackets 30, 30.

Outward movement of the side stems is limited by nuts 34, 34 screwed onto their inner ends :andwashers 35, '35 having bosses similar to the washers 3 3, 33 and adapted to engage re-entrant seats similar to seats 36, 35 on the opposite sides of the brackets 30 from the re-entrant seats engaged .by washers 33, 33.

According to the invention, simple leaf spring means are provided for normally holding the buffer and face ,plate assembly central. Such mean'smay comprise the double multi-leaf cantilever springs 31, 31, one interposed between each side stem and the adjacent vertical side wall P1 of the center sill. The inner end of each spring 31 is loosely held by a bracket, as 38, secured to the upper center sill bracing web I9, while :its outer end bears against the bearing .:plate,"as '39, secured ltO the inboard side .of the adjacent side stem 26, the central clamping sleeve 40 of the spring being seated in a socket 41 secured to the adjacent side wall 11 of the center sill.

The weight 'of the buffer andface plateassem- =b1y 28.may be carriedby the end wall-of the car i-'0, which includes the spaced collision posts 42, 42, in avmanner similar to that shown in Patent No. 2,415,385, issued February 4, 1947 to W. B. Dean et al., andentitled Diaphragm Support for Railway Cars. This support is through the hanger rods, 43, 43 ,(seeFigs. 1 and '7 pivoted at their lower ends at 44, 44 (seeFigs. 2 and 7) t0 the respective sides-of the face plate assembly and at their upper ends having cushioned con- .nections 45, 45,-with- brackets 45, 46 secured to the respective collision :posts. The pivotal con- ;nection at-their lower-ends is a loose connection. .and the cushioned connection :at the top is through rubber cushions .so as to zpermit slight up and down and .sidewise movement of :the .face plate-assembly 28.

v At-the top, the face plate .assembly 28.is.held ,yieldingly spaced Z'from .the end wall 10 .by ,a usual-transverseleaf spring '41, the central portionof the spring being connected to the .face :plate :assembly .28 .and the 'ends having a usual pivotal connection art-48,48, to the carend well,

see Fig. 1.

The face plate assembly r28 Jis shownes com- ;prisinga .face plate .proper extending around the .sides andtopofanoorway opening and forming with :the buffer pasting facing ,plate 50, -a fiat face :forengagement with a corresponding face ,plate onan adjoining-coupled car. This face ,plate is connected at sides'and .top to the end wall by .a usual flexible inner diaphragm 5 l .As shown, the face plate assembly also supports .springmressed hinged-side members 52, :52 which .are connected by .anouterfiexible diaphragm 53 to the outer :margin of the sides and :topof the car .to .form a streamline continuation" thereof.

:It a will be understood that the. invention :is not limited-to this particular type of faceplate assembly, but is'equally-applicable tootheriorms of face plate?assemblies, having norouter diaphra m support.

.-Accordin g to the invention, the buffer casting :21 :is ;provided=opposite the projecting bosses -24 with recesses v54 4 of somewhat ,larger dimensions .both vertically -zand .laterally thanthe outer'dtmensions -.of .the .bosses, :these recesses being .de-

signe d ,.to cooperate with the-bosses under certain condition to provide positive stops which prevent wee-.

excessive lateral and/or vertical relative movement between the face plate assembly and the car end.

To facilitate the assembly or dis-assembly of the side stems 2% without removing the face plate assembly 23, the brackets 36 are preferably longitudinally split in planes passing through the respective openings therein, into two parts, normally held together by bolts 55. When it is desired to remove a side stem the hinge bolt 29 connecting the stem to the buffer casting, and the bolts 55 connecting the two part bracket are removed, after which the bracket parts can be separated, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 6 and the side stem and spring assembly can be inwardly withdrawn, the openings in the end sill casting being sufficiently large to permit the outer enlarged end of the stems to pass through them. It can be similarly readily assembled in the reverse order.

With the face plate mounting herein described, it will be seen that it is mounted for universal movement to a limited extent in all directions, but is restrained against such movement by yielding means. Such movement is desirable to allow the two face plates of adjoining coupled cars to follow each others movements to a lim-v ited extent, such as occurs when the cars are moving along a fairly smooth track, without sliding on each other and thereby producing grating noises. Normally the face plates are held central by the leaf springs 37, 3?, as shown in Fig. 2. The lost motion extension of the side stems through the openings 25 in the end sill permits limited lateral movement oftlie face plates with respect to the end sill against the pressure of said springs. If the face plates are forced laterally when the cars are in buff the frictional engagement between them is sufiiciently great to overcome the centering springs 31 and may cause bending of the side stems, if they are moved laterally an excessive amount, by engagement with the sides of the openings 25. Under such conditions, the bosses 24 extending between the sides of the recesses 5 positively prevent such excessive lateral movement, by striking the adjacent sides of the recesses before the side stems engage the sides of the openings 25.

The same positive limitation of the vertical movements of the face plate is prevented by the bosses 24 striking the top or bottom walls of the recesses 54 before the side stems strike the tops and bottoms of the openings 25.

This arrangement permits the use of lighter side stems without exposing them to the danger of injury on excessive lateral or vertical movements of the face plate, which may occur under excessive buff forces especially while rounding a curve or in going over a hump or depression in the tracks.

Fig. 3 shows how one of the projections 24 enters a depression or recess 54 in rounding a curve even when the cars are in normal coupled relation without excessive buff, and since the tendency to excessive lateral movement of the face plates is accentuated, due to centrifugal force, in rounding a curve, this insures that such excessive movement cannot occur under these conditions under any conditions of operation.

The center stem 22 engages the buffer casting 2'? through its rounded end by a simple abutting engagement and does not interfere to any material extent with the desired limited lateral and vertical movements of the face plate. The center and side stems together resiliently maintain the bulfersand face plates proper of two coupled cars in engagement under all conditions of operation. 7

While a specific embodiment of the invention has been herein described in detail it will be understood that changes and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the main features of the invention and such changes and modifications are intended to be covered in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A railway car end arrangement comprising a car body end framing, a diaphragm face plate assembly, including a bottom transverse member, supported from said end framing, yielding,

' means associated with said support permitting.

limited universal movement including lateral and vertical movement of said face plate as sembly with respect to the car body end framing. and cushioning such movement, and positivestop means comprising a direct metal to metal engagement between the bottom transverse member of said face plate assembly and the car body end framing for positively limiting the cushioned relative lateral and vertical movements of said face plate assembly.

2. A railway car end arrangement comprising acar end frame including a transversely extending end underframemembena center sill structure secured to said. end underframe member, a

buffer carrying a face plate supported in outwardly spaced relation from said end underframe, means for yieldingly urging the buffer and face plate outwardly including side stems having theirouter ends pivoted to said buffer and passing, through openings freely receiving them in the end underframe member and, adjacent their inner ends, passing through guiding means secured to the center sill structure, said side stems flanking the opposite sides of the center sill structure in spaced relation thereto, and resilient means operatively engaging the respective stems near their outer ends and removably interposed between the opposite sides of said center sill structure and the respective side stems to yieldingly hold said buffer and face plate centered but permitting cushioned lateral movement thereof.

3. A railway car end arrangement comprising a car end frame including a transversely extending end underframe member, a diaphragm face plate assembly supported in outwardly spaced relation from said end frame, means for yieldingly urging the face plate assembly outwardly including side stems passing through openings freely receiving them in said member, yielding means engaging said side stems laterally for holding said face plate assembly centered but permitting limited cushioned lateral movement thereof, and positive step means directly between said face plate assembly and said transverse member for stopping said lateral movement before either side stem forcibly engages the side of its associated opening.

4. A railway car end arrangement comprising a car end frame including a transversely extending end underframe member, a center sill structure secured to said end underframe member, a

diaphragm face plate assembly supported in steam to the opposite sides of said-center sill structure, their inner ends being guided by brackets secured to the center sillstructure, and a pair of readily mountable and demountable leaf spring elements, one interposed between each side stem and the adjacent side of said center sill structure and engaging the associated sidestem near its outer end, for normally holding the face plate assembly centered but permitting cushioned limited lateral movements thereof.

5. A railway car end arrangement comprising a car body end framing, a diaphragm race plate assembly, including a bottom transverse member, supported therefrom from said endframing, yielding means associated with said support permitting limited lateral movement of said face plate assembly with respect to the car body framing and cushioning such movement, and positive stop means comprising a direct metal to metal engagement between the bottom transverse member of said face plate assembly and the car body framing for limiting the cushioned relative lateral movements of said face plate assembly.

6. A railway car end arrangement comprising a car body underframe including a transversely extending end member, a buffer member supported outwardly of said end'mem'ber, and yielding means for urging said buffer member outwardly, said means'inclu'ding side stems pivoted to the buffermember and passing freely through openings-in said transversely extending member, an inner abutment means surrounding and loosely guiding the inner ends of said stems, springs interposed between said stems and the abutment means, said "abutment "means being split lengthwise or the associated stem into two separable parts, to permit ready assembly of the side stems and springs with, and disassembly from, the'und'e'rframe and buffer without removing the bufier from its normal position.

7. A railway car end arrangement comprising a car body end framing including a transversely extending end member, a buffer member supported outwardly from said end framing for in and out, angular and limited transverse move= merit with respect thereto, means yieldingly re= straining the movements of said buffer member, and "positive stop means between said buffer member'and said end member for positively limitingthe yieldingly'restrained lateral movements of the buffer member, said means comprising integral projections on one of said members adapted to project into recesses loosely receiving them'on the other. I

WALTER B. DEAN. RAYMOND J. THERIAULT.

RE FEREN CES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patenti UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 443,075 Elliott Dec. 16, 1890 474,966 McElroy May 17, 1892 489,906 Hancock Jan. 10, 1893 1,923,441 Kass et a1. Aug. 22, 1933 2,073,198 Doclds, Jr. Mar. 9, 1937 2,132,327 Tatum Oct. 4, 1938 2,337,081 Blomberg Dec. 21, 1943 2,385,138 Keller Sept. 18, 1945

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