US1437090A

US1437090A - Combined door brace and locking mechanism

Info

Publication number: US1437090A
Application number: US504237A
Authority: US
Inventors: Campbell Argyle
Original assignee: Enterprise Railway Equipment Co
Current assignee: Enterprise Railway Equipment Co
Priority date: 1921-09-29
Filing date: 1921-09-29
Publication date: 1922-11-28
Anticipated expiration: 1939-11-28

Description

2 SHEETSSHEET 2- A. CAMPBELL. COMBINED DOOR BRACE AND LOCKING MECHANISM.

Patented Nov. 28, 1922.

APPLICATION FlLED SEPT-29, 1921.

293 7 Z A g II 75 I kg A S I ,2 15 J; 1 v 75 g Z A; v

/amd Fatented Nov. 28, 1922.

fi'i'ia'l'hii *1:

rr trio.

CAMPBELL, F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOB TO ENTERPRISE RAILWAY EQUIPMENT COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORFOR'ATION 0F ILLINQIS.

. COMBINED-DOOR BEAGE LOCKING BEECHANISM.

Application filed Sieptcmber 29, 1921. Serial No. 504,237.

T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known thatl, ARGYLE CAMPBELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented. a certain new and useful Improvement in Combined Door Brace and Locking- Mechanism, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the ac- 1 companying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in combined door brace and locking mechanism.

In certain types of dump cars, particularly those of the so-called Vii-type, it is customary to employ a cross-brace uniting transverse pairs of doors to effect simultaneous movements and also to reinforce the shaft extending transversely of the car with suitable connections between said shaft and the brace for opening and closing the doors.

In such cases, it is evident that the brace performs merely its usual functions and the shaft merely its usual functions.

The object of my invention is to eliminate the usual shaft and utilize the crossbrace in lieu thereof in the door locking mechanism proper, or considered from the opposite view point, to utilize the operating shaft to perform the functions of the door brace, thereby minimizing the amount of material required and the dead weight of the car and reducing the cost of manufacture.

Another object-of the invention is to provide, in car construction, .a combined door brace and door operating shaft.

Other objects of the invention will more clearly appear from the description and claims hereinafter following.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1' is a side elevational view of a portion of a dump car of the socalled W-type showing my improvements in connection therewith. Fig. 2 is a sectional view corresponding substantially to the secs tion line 22 of Fig. 1. Figs. 3 and dare enlarged detail sectional views corresponding with the section lines 83 and 4.4L, respectively, of Fig. 2. Figs. 5 and 6 are views similar toFigs. 1 and 2, respectively but illustrating a difierent embodiment of the invention, Fig. 6 corresponding to the secdoors and in addition, to use an operating tion line 6-45 of Fig. 5. And Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view corresponding to the line 7'7 of Fig. 6. 7

Referring first to'the construction illustrated in 1 to 4:, inclusive, the details of only one hopper of the car are shown. As

shown, said hopper is defined by an inner side hopper sheet 10, outer side hopper sheet 11, a sloping bottom hopper sheet 12 and the discharge opening is closed by a hopper door 13 pivoted along its upper edge so as to swing about a horizontal axis ere tending transversely of the car as indicated conventionally at 14. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the hoppers are duplicated on each side of the center sill construction of the car so that there will be a pair of transversely alined doors 13 and this entire structure will be duplicated for each half of the car on opposite sides of the longitudinal center thereof. 1

In carrying out my invention, I mount on the two transversely alined doors, in the instance shown, a combined brace and operating shaft designated generally by the reference A. This combined brace and shaft includes, as shown. a shaft proper 15 which acts as a compression member. a T-har tension member 16 and strut 17. The shaft proper 15 is made of suitable heavy rod terial and is journaled preferably in two places on each door 13 as by means of the two-part journal bearing brackets 18 --18 shown in detail in Fig. 3. Said brackets 1818 are preferably in the form of cast ings adapted to be riveted or bolted to the main sheet of the door and to allow of the insertion and removal of the shaft proper 15. Said journal bearing brackets are preferably located near 'the'inner and outer edges of the door as best indicated in Fig. 2.

The T-bar 16, where it bridges the space at the center of the car between the two doors extends parallelv to the shaft proper 15 as 'web of the T oar is cut away so as to par allel the shaft as indicated at 16 and the flanges at the extreme end are riveted to the shai't proper as indicated 1919. Additional braces are wrapped around the shaft proper and the ends thereof riveted to the web of the T-bar as indicated at 20. The details of the struts 17 are best indicated in Fig. l, where it will be noted that the same are formed of metal straps wrapped around the shaft proper 15 and riveted thereto as indicated at 21, the ends of the strap being; united intermediate the shaft proper and the T-bar, as indicated at 22 and the free ends made to straddle the web of the T-bar and riveted thereto as indicated at 23.

lVith the construct-ion described, it is evident that the combined brace and operatii shaft is adapted to pivot or oscillate on the doors about an axis parallel to the pivotal axis of the doors, for the purpose hereinafter described. It will also be noted that the structure described serves as an efiicient brace for the tree edges of the door when the latter are under load to prevent the same -lrom buckling or becoming bent and that the two'transversely alined doors 13 of each pair or set, will be operated simultaneously as customary.

To look the doors in closed position, the shatt'proper 15, at each end thereof, is provided with a crank arm consisting of a right-angled extension extending parallel orsubstantially parallel to the outside hopper sheet 11 and also an out-turned shorter arm 25 parallel to the main portion of the shaft proper 15.

Cooperable with each crank arm end of the-operating shaft proper on each side oi the car, is a bracket B riveted or otherwise rigidly secured to the fixed hopper sheets of the car. Each of said brackets B, as shown, preferably consists of a flange 26 parallel and riveted to the side hopper sheets and a bottom flange 2'? extended under and riveted to the bottom hopper sheet 12. Each bracket is also formed with a laterally extended web having an inclined portion 28 and a portion 29 extending parallel to the bottom hopper sheet 1.2. From the outer do-es of the flanges 2829 extends in a ver- 'tical plane upwardly, a side flange 30 having" a sloping cam edge 31 on the side adj acent the door, a straight edge 32 on the opposite extending parallel to the door when the latter is in closed position and a rounded top merging with the edges 31. and The "flange 30 is so located as to lie in the path of the laterally extended arm 25 of the operating shaft proper so that said arm 25 is adapted to ride up or be cainmed up the edge 31 when the door is moved to closed position and then dropped behind into looking engagement with the straight edge or shoulder 32. 111 actual practice, the com- 'bined operating shaft and brace will be so similar in all sub weighted that the arms will lie in such position as to engage the cam e es 31 as the doors are moved to closed pos tion.

To hold the locking mechanism in operaive position when the doors are closed, I rovide a cam locking dog 31 p "otally attached to suitable bracket applied to a side hopper sheet 11, preferably on one side of the car only so that the doors may be locked and released without the neces hopper bottom sheet 1.12 and pivoted hopper door 111 this arrangement, I employ a channel-shaped cross-brace indicated at A, the latter being pivotally attached at two places to each door 113 by suitable hinged butts 118. As viewed in Fig. 7, the crossbrace A is adapted to swing in only one direction and that is upwardly clockwise, the inner flange -10 of the channel limiting, the downward position of the channel A. As will. he understood, the channel A is extended transversely of the car so as to insure simultaneous operation of the transverse pair or set or doors 113. [it each end, the channel fa. has rigidly secured thereto by riveting or other suitable tastening means, a

crank arm similar to the corresponeine; part shown in Figs. 1 and .2.

(in each s the car to the outer side hopper sheets 111 is secured a bracket B tantial respects with the brackets except that the position thereof is reversed so as to have the cam edges 1.31 sloping down Jardl s and away from the door and causing the combined operating element and brace to be swung in the opposite direction in moving to closed position behind the straight ed,-:;e A. correspondin cam locking dog 184: cooperates with one 0. 1e arms 125, said locking dog 1% being pivoted to a suitable casting 135 secured to the side hopper sheet, as shown in Fig. 5.

l have herein'shown and described what 1 now consider the preferred manner 01"? carying out the invention, but the same is merely illustrative and l contemplate all changes and modifications that come within the scope of the claims appended hereto.

claim:

1. In a hopper carconstruction, the combination with a pair of hoppers each having and means cooperable with said element to hold the doors tightly in fully closed posi tion.

2. In car construction having a hopper and a pivoted hopper door, the combination with a brace pivotally attached directly to the door adjacent its free edge to oscillate about an axis substantially parallel to the free edge of the door; of cooperable means on a fixed part of the car and on said pivoted brace arranged to lock the door in fully closed position.

3. In car construction having a hopper,

and a pivoted. hopper door, the combinatio with a brace movably attached to the door, said brace at one side edge of the door having a crank arm; of a cooperable shouldered bracket secured to a fixed part of the hopper and with which said crank arm is adapted to engage to hold the door in closed position.

4c. In a hopper car, the combination with a pair of hoppers each provided with a pivoted hopper door, the doors being alined; of a brace extending between said doors and pivotally secured to each adjacent the free edges thereof to oscillate about an axis parallel to the free edge of the door; and cooperable means on the ends of said brace and on fixed parts of the car arranged to lock said doors in closed position.

5. In a hopper car, the combination with a pair of hoppers each provided with a piv oted hopper door, said doors being disposed in alinement; of a brace extending between and pivotally attached to both of said doors; and cooperable means on fixed parts of the car and on the ends of said brace for locking said doors in closed position.

6. In a hopper car, the combination with a pair of hoppers, one on each side of the center sill and each provided with a hopper door pivotally mounted along its upper edge to swing about a horizontal axis extending transversely of the car, said doors being in alinement; of a combined door locking element and brace movably mounted on said doors adjacent their free edges, said brace constituting the sole connection between the doors; and means mounted on a fixed part of the car, cooperable with said combined locking element and brace arranged to hold the doors in fully closed position.

7. In a hopper car, the combination with a hopper on each side of the center sill of the car, each hopper having a hopper door pivotally mounted along its upper edge about a horizontal axis extending transversely of the car; of a brace extending between said doors and pivotally mounted thereon adjacent and parallel to their free edges, said brace having crank arms at each end thereof; fixed brackets on each side of the car cooperable with said crank arms. each bracket having a locking shoulder and a cam edge adapted to guide the crank arm into operative relation with the locking shoulder; and means for retaining said crank arms in locked position.

8. In a dump car having a pivotally mounted discharge door, the combination with a brace pivotally mounted on the door adjacent and parallel to the free edge thereof, said brace having a crank arm included therein; of a fixed bracket on the car cooperable with said crank arm, said bracket having a locking shoulder and a cam edge adapted to guide the crank arm into operative relation with the looking shoulder; and means for retaining said crank arm in locked position.

9. In a dump car having a pivotally mounted discharge door, the combination with a brace pivotally mounted on the door adjacent the free edge thereof, said brace extending substantially parallel to the free edge and having its maximum dimension substantially perpendicular to the plane of the door when the latter is in closed position; of cooperable means on a fixed part of the car and on said brace for locking the door in closed position by means of said brace and when the latter is in its position with the maximum dimension thereof substantially perpendicular to the plane of the door.

10. In a hopper car, the combination with a pair of hoppers each having a pivotally mounted hopper door, the doors being in alinement; of an element of a door locking mechanism oscillatably mounted on said doors about an axis adjacent and substantially parallel to the free edges thereof, said element acting as a brace for both doors and having its maximum transverse dimension substantially perpendicular to the planes of the doors when the latter are in closed position; and means cooperable with said element to hold the doors in closed position when said element is disposed with its maximum transverse dimension substantially perpendicular to the planes of the doors.

11. In a dump car having a pivoted discharge door, the combination with a brace pivotally mounted on the door adjacent and substantially parallel to the free edge thereof, said brace having crank arms at the ends thereof; of fixed brackets on the car cooperable with said crank arms, each bracket having a locking shoulder and a cam guide edge for the respective crank arm and means for retaining said crank arms in operative position with respect to said brackets.

12. In a dump car having a pair of alined pivoted discharge doors, the combination with a combined brace and door locking ele ment pivotally mounted on said doors and by \vnich the latter are adapted to be moved simultaneously, said element being of trussed formation, intermediate its ends, said element having also a crank arm included therein; and means on a fixed part of the car cooperable With said crank arm for locking the doors in closed position.

18. In a hopper car, the combination With a pair of hoppers, one on each side of the center sill and each provided with a hopper