US20070068417A1 - Sliding gate actuating mechanism - Google Patents
Sliding gate actuating mechanism Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20070068417A1 US20070068417A1 US11/512,774 US51277406A US2007068417A1 US 20070068417 A1 US20070068417 A1 US 20070068417A1 US 51277406 A US51277406 A US 51277406A US 2007068417 A1 US2007068417 A1 US 2007068417A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- door
- pin
- hopper
- shaft
- gates
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
- 230000008878 coupling Effects 0.000 claims 1
- 238000010168 coupling process Methods 0.000 claims 1
- 238000005859 coupling reaction Methods 0.000 claims 1
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 3
- 229910019142 PO4 Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 229910000831 Steel Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 208000027418 Wounds and injury Diseases 0.000 description 1
- 238000010276 construction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000006378 damage Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000007599 discharging Methods 0.000 description 1
- 208000014674 injury Diseases 0.000 description 1
- NBIIXXVUZAFLBC-UHFFFAOYSA-K phosphate Chemical compound [O-]P([O-])([O-])=O NBIIXXVUZAFLBC-UHFFFAOYSA-K 0.000 description 1
- 239000010452 phosphate Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000010959 steel Substances 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B61—RAILWAYS
- B61D—BODY DETAILS OR KINDS OF RAILWAY VEHICLES
- B61D7/00—Hopper cars
- B61D7/14—Adaptations of hopper elements to railways
- B61D7/16—Closure elements for discharge openings
- B61D7/20—Closure elements for discharge openings sliding
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B61—RAILWAYS
- B61D—BODY DETAILS OR KINDS OF RAILWAY VEHICLES
- B61D7/00—Hopper cars
- B61D7/14—Adaptations of hopper elements to railways
- B61D7/16—Closure elements for discharge openings
- B61D7/24—Opening or closing means
- B61D7/28—Opening or closing means hydraulic or pneumatic
Definitions
- the present invention relates generally to an apparatus for opening the sliding gates of a railway hopper car, and, in particular, to a novel apparatus for simultaneously opening all of the sliding gates of a railway hopper car, regardless of the direction in which the gate is moved.
- a common type of railroad freight car in use today is the covered freight car of the type wherein the load is discharged through sliding doors, which are also known as sliding gates, on the underside of the body.
- Such cars are generally referred to as covered hopper cars and are used to haul grain, phosphate, plastic, and other dry bulk commodities that require protection from natural elements.
- each gate can be manually cranked open or closed with a steel bar that is inserted into a fitting on the gate, one gate at a time; or, each gate can be opened and closed by manually applying a rotary drive air wrench to the same fitting on the gate, one gate at a time. While either of these methods will open the gates and allow the covered hopper to unload, both are time consuming because of the manual operation and because of the need to open each gate individually. Moreover, both methods are labor intensive and expose to injury those persons who are manually opening the sliding gates.
- U.S. Pat. No. 3,596,609, issued to Ortner et al. describes a system for simultaneously opening rotating hopper doors.
- U.S. Pat. No. 3,348,501, issued to Stevens et al. describes a sliding gate system, individually activated, for discharging the hopper contents through either one large opening or two smaller side-by-side openings;
- French Pat. No. 1,188,761 describes a sliding gate system which automatically opens all the sliding gates of a railway car in one direction.
- shifting mechanism mounted on the underside of the hopper which is coupled to each of the sliding gates which opens all gates simultaneously, regardless of direction for opening, when activated by a single power source.
- Levers connecting each sliding door to the shifting mechanism pivot in the proper manner to enable each door to open as the shifting mechanism is moved in one direction.
- FIG. 1 is a plan view of a hopper car capable of using the present invention
- FIG. 2A -C, inclusive, is a plan view of the mechanism of the present invention.
- FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the mechanism of the present invention.
- FIG. 1 there is shown a typical hopper car, generally designated at 100 , equipped with a preferred object of the present invention.
- Three hoppers 12 are shown, with doors 102 a covering the outlet of each hopper.
- FIGS. 2 A-C show the actuating mechanism of the present invention in detail.
- An air cylinder 104 is shown in FIG. 2C .
- Cylinder 104 is attached to a support 106 which is coupled to the underside of the hopper car 100 by a pin 108 .
- the movable end of cylinder 104 is attached to a clevis 110 which is rotatably coupled to a lever 112 by a pin 114 .
- the other end of lever 112 is rigidly affixed on a rotatable shaft 116 .
- Shaft 116 extends horizontally along the railroad car (see FIG. 3 ) beneath a center sill 118 .
- a pair of supports 120 are affixed to center sill 118 to support shaft 116 .
- a pair of levers 122 are also rigidly coupled on shaft 116 on either side of center sill 118 .
- a pair of links 124 are coupled to levers 122 by virtue of a pin 126 which rides within a slot 128 in each link 124 .
- the opposite ends of each link 124 is coupled for rotation to a door connector 130 by a pin 132 .
- Door 102 a which covers each hopper is connected between door connectors 130 .
- levers 122 and links 124 are at the positions shown at 132 .
- a position stop is provided by a bolt 134 which contacts lever 122 .
- pin 126 passes beyond a plane through the centers of pin 132 and link 124 , which is shown by line 136 , providing an overcenter latch to help insure that door 102 a remains closed.
- air is supplied to cylinder 104 , causing clevis 110 to move to the left in FIG. 2C .
- Lever 112 rotates shaft 116 , causing links 124 to shift to the positions shown at 138 .
- air cylinder 104 is reversed, moving clevis 110 to the right, causing the mechanism to reverse.
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Transportation (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Filling Or Emptying Of Bunkers, Hoppers, And Tanks (AREA)
Abstract
An actuating system for operating sliding gates of a railway hopper car in which the mechanism contains an overcenter latch for insuring that the door remains closed when in the closed position for safety purposes.
Description
- This application claims benefit from U. S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/712,559, filed Aug. 30, 2005, which application is incorporated herein by reference.
- 1. Field of the Invention
- The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for opening the sliding gates of a railway hopper car, and, in particular, to a novel apparatus for simultaneously opening all of the sliding gates of a railway hopper car, regardless of the direction in which the gate is moved.
- 2. Description of the Prior Art.
- A common type of railroad freight car in use today is the covered freight car of the type wherein the load is discharged through sliding doors, which are also known as sliding gates, on the underside of the body. Such cars are generally referred to as covered hopper cars and are used to haul grain, phosphate, plastic, and other dry bulk commodities that require protection from natural elements.
- After covered hopper cars are spotted over an unloading pit, the sliding gates on the bottoms of the cars are presently opened and closed by either of two methods: Each gate can be manually cranked open or closed with a steel bar that is inserted into a fitting on the gate, one gate at a time; or, each gate can be opened and closed by manually applying a rotary drive air wrench to the same fitting on the gate, one gate at a time. While either of these methods will open the gates and allow the covered hopper to unload, both are time consuming because of the manual operation and because of the need to open each gate individually. Moreover, both methods are labor intensive and expose to injury those persons who are manually opening the sliding gates.
- The problem of safely and efficiently unloading hopper cars has been addressed previously.
- U.S. Pat. No. 3,633,515, issued to Shaver, et al., describes a power operated door opening and closing mechanism for rotating doors; U.S. Pat. No. 3,596,609, issued to Ortner et al., describes a system for simultaneously opening rotating hopper doors. U.S. Pat. No. 3,348,501, issued to Stevens et al., describes a sliding gate system, individually activated, for discharging the hopper contents through either one large opening or two smaller side-by-side openings; French Pat. No. 1,188,761 describes a sliding gate system which automatically opens all the sliding gates of a railway car in one direction.
- U.S. Patent No. 4,628,825, issued to Taylor, provides an actuating system for operating sliding gates of a railway hopper car which opens all of the gates simultaneously, regardless of the direction which the gates must move to open. However, none of the above systems address the locking of the mechanism so that there would be no chance of the mechanism opening unintentionally. To avoid this problem, an overcenter latch design is used in the present invention.
- It is an object of the present invention to provide a mechanism for a hopper car having sliding gates that will simultaneously open all of the gates, regardless of the direction the gates must move to open.
- It is a further object of this invention to provide a system for opening all of the sliding gates of a hopper car simultaneously from one power source such that the car can be unloaded quickly and safely.
- It is still a further object of this invention to provide a mechanism for simultaneous opening of all sliding gates of a hopper car that can be easily retrofitted to existing hopper railway cars as well as to be incorporated into new construction.
- It is still a further object of the present invention to provide an overcenter latch on the actuating mechanism to lessen any chance that the doors will open unintentionally.
- These and other objects may be accomplished by use of a shifting mechanism mounted on the underside of the hopper which is coupled to each of the sliding gates which opens all gates simultaneously, regardless of direction for opening, when activated by a single power source. Levers connecting each sliding door to the shifting mechanism pivot in the proper manner to enable each door to open as the shifting mechanism is moved in one direction.
-
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a hopper car capable of using the present invention; -
FIG. 2A -C, inclusive, is a plan view of the mechanism of the present invention; -
FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the mechanism of the present invention. - Referring now to
FIG. 1 , there is shown a typical hopper car, generally designated at 100, equipped with a preferred object of the present invention. Three hoppers 12 are shown, withdoors 102 a covering the outlet of each hopper. - FIGS. 2A-C show the actuating mechanism of the present invention in detail. An
air cylinder 104 is shown inFIG. 2C .Cylinder 104 is attached to asupport 106 which is coupled to the underside of thehopper car 100 by apin 108. The movable end ofcylinder 104 is attached to aclevis 110 which is rotatably coupled to alever 112 by apin 114. The other end oflever 112 is rigidly affixed on arotatable shaft 116.Shaft 116 extends horizontally along the railroad car (seeFIG. 3 ) beneath acenter sill 118. A pair ofsupports 120 are affixed tocenter sill 118 to supportshaft 116. - Also rigidly coupled on
shaft 116 on either side ofcenter sill 118 are a pair oflevers 122. At the opposite ends of eachlever 122, a pair oflinks 124 are coupled to levers 122 by virtue of apin 126 which rides within aslot 128 in eachlink 124. The opposite ends of eachlink 124 is coupled for rotation to adoor connector 130 by apin 132.Door 102 a which covers each hopper is connected betweendoor connectors 130. - When
door 102 is in its closed position, levers 122 andlinks 124 are at the positions shown at 132. A position stop is provided by abolt 134 which contacts lever 122. In this position,pin 126 passes beyond a plane through the centers ofpin 132 andlink 124, which is shown byline 136, providing an overcenter latch to help insure thatdoor 102 a remains closed. When it is desired to openhopper door 102 a, air is supplied tocylinder 104, causingclevis 110 to move to the left inFIG. 2C . Lever 112 rotatesshaft 116, causinglinks 124 to shift to the positions shown at 138. This motion causes pin 26 to move to the position shown at 140, crossing the betweenpin 132 andshaft 116, releasing the overcenter latch. Continued movement ofclevis 110 causespin 114 to move to the position shown at 114′, andlever 112 is rotated byshaft 116 to the position shown at 112′. This continued movement causespin 126 to move to the position shown at 126′, andlever 124 is rotated byshaft 116 to the position shown at 124′, and finally to the position shown at 126″. At this open position, levers 122 and 124 reach their final position at 122″ and 124″. In this position,hopper door 102 a is shifted to the open position. - To close the hopper doors,
air cylinder 104 is reversed, movingclevis 110 to the right, causing the mechanism to reverse.
Claims (1)
1) An actuating system for operating sliding gates of a railway hopper car which contains an overcenter latch, comprising:
an air cylinder;
a rotatable shaft;
a lever coupling said air cylinder to said shaft;
a sliding gate door;
a pair of levers coupled together by a first pin, with an end of one of the levers coupled to said door by a second pin;
and a plane through said second pin and said shaft, where when the door is in the closed position, said first pin has traveled through said plan to create an overcenter latching effect to insure that said door will remain closed.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US11/512,774 US20070068417A1 (en) | 2005-08-30 | 2006-08-30 | Sliding gate actuating mechanism |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US71255905P | 2005-08-30 | 2005-08-30 | |
US11/512,774 US20070068417A1 (en) | 2005-08-30 | 2006-08-30 | Sliding gate actuating mechanism |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20070068417A1 true US20070068417A1 (en) | 2007-03-29 |
Family
ID=37892317
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US11/512,774 Abandoned US20070068417A1 (en) | 2005-08-30 | 2006-08-30 | Sliding gate actuating mechanism |
Country Status (1)
Country | Link |
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US (1) | US20070068417A1 (en) |
Cited By (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20080066642A1 (en) * | 2006-09-08 | 2008-03-20 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car fittings and method of operation |
Citations (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US5249531A (en) * | 1989-09-14 | 1993-10-05 | Taylor Fred J | Railraod hopper car door actuating mechanism |
-
2006
- 2006-08-30 US US11/512,774 patent/US20070068417A1/en not_active Abandoned
Patent Citations (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US5249531A (en) * | 1989-09-14 | 1993-10-05 | Taylor Fred J | Railraod hopper car door actuating mechanism |
Cited By (9)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20080066642A1 (en) * | 2006-09-08 | 2008-03-20 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car fittings and method of operation |
US7703397B2 (en) | 2006-09-08 | 2010-04-27 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car fittings and method of operation |
US20100132587A1 (en) * | 2006-09-08 | 2010-06-03 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car ridge fittings |
US20100319570A1 (en) * | 2006-09-08 | 2010-12-23 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car structure |
US8047140B2 (en) | 2006-09-08 | 2011-11-01 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car structure |
US8065964B2 (en) | 2006-09-08 | 2011-11-29 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car ridge fittings |
US8622004B2 (en) | 2006-09-08 | 2014-01-07 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car ridge fittings |
US9272717B2 (en) | 2006-09-08 | 2016-03-01 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car ridge fittings |
US10214224B2 (en) | 2006-09-08 | 2019-02-26 | National Steel Car Limited | Rail road hopper car |
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Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION |