US2361081A

US2361081A - Appliance for railroad cars

Info

Publication number: US2361081A
Application number: US417451A
Authority: US
Inventors: Brandon Martin
Original assignee: BRANCO CORP
Current assignee: BRANCO Corp
Priority date: 1941-11-01
Filing date: 1941-11-01
Publication date: 1944-10-24
Anticipated expiration: 1961-10-24

Description

Oct. 24, 1944. l M. BRANDON 2,36%,981

APPLIANCE FOR RAILROAD CARS l Filed NOV. l, 1941 /"Qndolz 2 20 v fs# WMM mi?? Patented Oct. 24, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT 4OFFICE APPLIANCE. FOR RAILR-OAD CARS Martin Brandon, Villa Park, Ill., assignor to The Chicago, Ill., a corpora- Branco Corporation,

tion of Illinois Application November 1, 1941, Serial No. 417,451

7 claims. (o1. 10s-369)' The panels are wider than the door opening sol as to extend laterally beyond the sides of the door opening into overlapping engagement with parts of the sides of the car body and to which they are nailed from the inside of the car. Such panels are relatively eX-pnsive.

must be loosened and removed from the car to permit of the flow or other movement of the grain out through a door opening.

The present practice in releasing panels of this?" kind from a car is to employ a relatively long specially formed, metal lever-like bar and pry the panels from their nailed-on position. Generally, the use of the lever-like bar lfor this purpose, results in damage to the panels'to such an.

thus resulting in rapid deterioration, but they" are also often stolen for use as kindling wood. Therefore, it is obvious that the matter of `expense and economic loss in the use of ,convem tional wooden panels of this kind is an item of importance to railroad companies hauling vast? quantities of bulk commodity such as grain.

In loading a car with certain commodities, it is often desirable to provide one or more transverse bulkheads in the car adjacent the planes of the sides of the door openings so as .to leave an aisle between said door openings. Heretofore in providing such bulkheads, wooden panels similar to those before mentioned Were nailed' to cleats on opposite sides of the car. In the removal of such bulkheads, the panels `were pried from the cleats and this often resulted in such damage to the panels as to require a repair thereof.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an appliance for a railroad car, which may be used to provide either a grain door therefor or a transverse bulkhead therefor and which appliance though light in weight, is strong and durable While costing less than the conventional structures used for the same purpose.

In unloading*y l bulk grain from the car, one or more such panels Another object of the invention is to provide an appliance adapted for use in pairs in connection with the side door opening of a car for closing the bottom portions thereof and made of such thin sheet material as to have vbut little resistance in itself to bulging pressure but including parts for connection to like parts of a companion appliance so that said appliances mutually coact in bracing one another to considerably increase their resistance to said bulging pressure.

A further object of the invention is to provide an appliance of this kind which may be readily secured in place across a door opening of a railroad car and this in a manner permitting a quick removal of the same for grain unloading purposes.

Also, it is an object of the invention to provide an appliance of this kind that may be readily handled and is of such a construction as to serve no purpose other than the intended one so that the consignee of the .car so equipped, will have no object in retaining the same but will return them to the car after unloading, for reuse.

Again, it is an object of the invention to provide an appliance of this kind which includes an integral part for an engagement with the floor of the car so as to there provide a seal without the necessity of calking operations.

The above mentioned objects of the invention, as well as others, together with the advantages thereof will more fully appear as the speciiication proceeds.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a perspective View of one form of appliance embodying the preferred form of the invention,y and which may be used either as a grain door or a bulkhead for railroad cars.

Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical cross sectional View through the lower part of the body of a railroad car in the plane of the side door opening thereof, to which a set of the improved .appliance has been applied to provide so-called grain doors therefor.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view through a part of the .car body as Ataken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2, v

Fig. 4 is a View in yend elevation, on an enlarged scale, of one of the improved appliances when folded for storage or shipment.

Fig. 5 is a detail .horizontal sectional view, on a further enlarged scale, through a par-t 0f the ystructure shown in Fig. 3 as ktaken on the line 5-5 of Fig, 3. y

Fig. 6 is a horizontal -sectional view through the body of a railroad -box car to `which a pair or" the improved appliances have -been applied to provide transverse bulkheads therein so posi- 'tioned as to leave an aisle between the opposite side door openings of the car.

In general, the improved appliance may be used in pairs 'in a railroad grain car, one for each side door opening therein or may be used individually or in pairs as one or more trans-v Each appliance includes a body of sheet materialwhich, for .the

verse bulkheads therefor.

purpose of economy, is relatively thinand therefore in "itself, has but little resistance to the bulging pressure of the grain in the car. appliance, however, :also includes parts which ,may be attached to like parts of a companion of the invention illustrated in the drawing andL especially to Fig. lthereof: I indicates an appliance embodying one form of the invention andwhich includes a body portion made from a rectangular piece of sheet material such as nbre board or corrugated paper board, of a width'y greater than that of a side door opening in a railroad car and of the desired height. At the bottomof the body is an integral hinged sealing flap or flange II, the hinge being formed by a score line IIa, and at each side of the body isv an integral hinged sealing flap I2--I2 the hinge of each of which is formed by a. score line I2a. The body is preferably formed with a plurality of vertically spaced score lines I3--I3 which divide that part of the body above the flap Il into a pluralityof horizontal panels,'the middle one of which has a height greater than the top and bottom -ones as best appears in Figs. 1 and 3. This scoring permits the body to be shipment as Ashown in Fig. 4.

On one face of the body, Iprovide a plurality of braces which rigidify the body against bulging under the action of the grain or other commodity in the car. As shown in the drawing, said braces may constitute cleats or strips of wood I4 which may be tacked, nailed or otherwise secured to the body of the appliance I0. Preferably there is one of such `braces secured to and extending along the longitudinal median line of each panel before mentioned. The length of said bracing strips I4-I4 is preferably less than the width of the car door opening with which the appliance may be associated and in each panel, at or near the top and bottom edges of each cleat I4 are longitudinally spaced pairs of small openings IFJ-I5, best indicated in Fig. 5.

Associated with each cleat I 4 is a.plurality of ilexible tie members IIS-I6 capable of resisting considerable tension. The mid portion of each `tie member is disposed in engagement about the outer face of the top and bottom edges of the vcleat while the end portions pass through the openings I--I5 to extend inwardly from the inner face of the body'. Thus each appliance is a self-contained unit, ready for application to a railroad car body indicated as a whole at I1.

Such a car body includes a door I8, and upright sides I9 having a door opening 20 therein. Usually each door opening is dened at the sides by upright side posts 2l, the inner face Yof which is usually arranged flush with the in- `ner face of the associated-*side I9 of the car.

Each

It is to be understood that when the improved appliances are to be used as grain car doors, one of thel improved appliances is employed in connection with each dooropening 20 of the car body. In applying said appliances, the same is carried out from inside the car body. One

' appliance is so positioned with respect to a door opening that end portions of the body, which include the flaps I2-I2, extend approximately an equal distance laterally beyond each side post 2l to provde'a good overlap upon the adjacent parts ofthe side I9 of the car, with the score line I Ia coincident with the inside corner formed by the sides of the car and the floor and with the flap Il engaged upon the floor. The flap II is nailed to the floor as indicated at 22 and then the end portions'of the body including the naps I2-I2 are nailed to the side of the car as indicated at 23. Another appliance is then similarly positioned with respect to the other door opening of the car. This leaves theV tie members I6 of both appliances extending inwardly into the car. Theworkrnan making the application then connectsA the'like ends of the tie elements of one appliance to the like elements of the other appliance, as best appears at |63: in Fig. 2.

The tie elements are preferably made of metal bands or wires. The ends 4of the tie elements of both appliances kmay be joined or connected together in any suitable `manner so that when joined they become relatively taut and act as tensioned connecting elements.

-When the car is loaded with bulk grain 24, as shown in Fig. 2, it is apparentthat the pressure thereof on the body of the appliances tends to` bulge them outwardly. However, the cleats Ill brace the body of each appliance against this ressure and as the a. liances on op osite sides folded into a compact condition for storage andIl o p pp p of the car are connected by the tensioned tie elements I6, the appliances coact through the tension members I6 -to brace each other against the bulgingpressure so that they are held in position in a relatively smooth even condition.

By means of the construction mentioned, each appliance seals the associated door opening 20 against leaking grain and reduces loss in this respect.

When it is desired to unload the bulk grain. one or both of the appliances may be pried away from its closure position withA the same lever-like tool now used in removing ythe conventional wooden door for the same purpose.

'In Fig. 6, a pair of such appliances is illustrated as being used to provide longitudinally spaced bulkheads in the car, with each bulkhead disposed in the plane of the door posts on opposite sides of the car. This' leaves an aisle 20a between the door openings 20k-2 0 at opposite sides of` the car. In this respecty it is pointed out that the distance between the score lines I2a-l2a and which define the width of the panels of the body,

the car and the cleats of said appliances are di'sposed toward the aisle. The flaps II and I2 are then nailed to the sides and the floor respectively r ofthe car and the free ends of the tension members IB-IG are then anchoredV to a fixed part of ..the car. This fixed'part jof the car is illustrated' in Fig. 6 asbeing the .associated end 19a of the tension memsure of said commodity tends to bulge the appliances toward the aisle a. This pressure, however, places the members |6-I6 under tension so that they hold the body of the bulkheads against said pressure, which tends to bulge them.

The improved appliance is light in weight and is also strong and durable'. It costs considerably less than the conventional wooden panels now used for the same purpose. It is proof against leaking grain and may be readily applied to the car. Also, its value for use other than its intended one is so small as to discourage the removal of the appliance from the car when the same is unloaded. As the appliances are capable of being folded for storage and shipment, a considerable amount of storage and shipping space is saved.

While in describing the invention, I have referred in detail to the form, arrangement and construction of the parts involved, the same is to be considered only in the illustrative sense so that I do not wish to be limited thereto except as may be specifically set forth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

l. In combination with a railroad car having a floor and opposed side walls, each with a door opening therein, an appliance closing at least the bottom part of each opening, and embodying therein a body portion of relatively thin sheet material wider than the associated door opening and having end portions extending laterally beyond said opening and attached to the associated side of the car, means carried by the body portion of each appliance for bracing the same against the bulging pressure of the grain in the car, and tension means extending between and connecting the body portions of said appliances together.

2. In combination with a railroad car having a oor and opposed side walls, each with a door opening therein, an appliance closing at least the bottom part of each opening, and embodying therein a body portion of relatively thin sheet material wider than the associated door opening and having end portions extending laterally beyond said opening and attached to the associated side of the car, a plurality of members xed to the body portion of each appliance for bracing the same against the bulging pressure of the grain in the car, and tension elements extending between and operatively connecting the bracing members of one appliance with the bracing members of the other appliance.

3. In combination with a railroad car having a floor and opposed side walls, each with a door opening therein, an appliance closing at least the bottom part of each opening, and embodying therein a body portion of relatively thin sheet material wider than the associated door opening and having end portions extending laterally beyond said opening and attached to the associated side of the car, a plurality of members fixed to the outer surface of the body portion of each appliance for bracing the same against the bulging pressure of the grain in the car, and tension elements extending through and between the body portions of said appliances and engaged with and connecting the bracing members on said appliances together.

4. In combination with a railroad car having a floor and opposed side walls each with a door opening therein, an appliance closing the bottom part of each door opening and embodying therein a body portion of relatively thin sheet material wider than the associated door opening and having end portions extending laterally beyond said opening and attached to the associated side of the car, the bottom part of said body being formed as an inwardly extending sealing flange that is attached to the floor, along the bottom of the door opening, means carried by the body portion of each appliance for bracing the same against the bulging pressure of the grain inthe car, and tension elements extending between and connecting the body portions of said appliances together.

5. In combination with a railroad car having a licor and opposed side walls, each with a door opening therein, an appliance closing the bottom part of each door opening and embodying therein a body portion of relatively thin sheet material wider than the associated door opening and having end portions extending laterally beyond Asaid opening and attached to the associated side of the car, the bottom part of said body being.

formed as an inwardly extending sealing liange that is attached to the floor, along the bottom of the door opening, a plurality of bracing elements on the outer surface of each appliance, and tension members engaged with the bracing members of said appliances and extending through said body v}ooi.tons thereof and operatively connected together.

6. rThe combination of a car structure having door openings in opposite sides thereof, ap-

pliances for closing the bottom portion of said openings, each including a piece of relatively thin sheet material extending across the associated door opening, each piece of sheet material being wider than the associated door opening and having marginal end portionsthat project beyond the sides of said door opening and overlap and are attached to the inner face of the associated side oi the car, and means extending between and secured to the pieces of sheet material of both appliances and acting as a tension means to limit the outward bulging of said pieces of sheet material of both appliances under the action of the grain in the car.

7. The combination of a'car'structure having door openings in opposite sides thereof, appliances for closing the bottom portion of said openings, each including a piece of relatively thin sheet material extending across the associated door opening, each piece of sheet material being wider than the associated door opening and having marginal end portions that project beyond the sides of said door opening and overlap and are attached to the inner face of the associated side of the car, means disposed upon the outer face of the piece of sheet material of both doors for bracing the same, and means secured to and extending between the bracing means for the pieces of sheet material of both appliances and acting as a tension means to limit the outward bulging of said pieces of sheet material of both appliances under the action of the grain in the car.

MARTIN BRANDON.`