US3503340A - Auto transporting passenger train - Google Patents

Description

March 31, 1970 ca. A. WARREN 3,503,340

AUTO TRANSPORTING PASSENGER TRAIN Filed Sepf. 11. 1967 v 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR GEORGE A WARREN ATTORNEY March 31, 1970 GFA. WARREN 3,

v AUTO TRANSPORTING PASSENGER TRAIN Filed Sept. 11. 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 k N O E m i r HE I I u I f N I n n H! I\J v n 1 [l5 II "3 I] I' il \l T INVENTOR 0 GEORGE A. WARREN ATTORNEY March 31, 1970 a. A. WARREN AUTO TRANSPORTING PASSENGER TRAIN 4 Sheets-Sheet :5

Filed Sept. 11. 1967 INVENTOR GEORGE A. WARREN ATTORNEY March 31, 19.70 a. A. WARREN 3,5

, AUTO TRANSPORTING PASSENGER TRAIN Filed Sept. 11, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet. 4.

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I EH] INVENTOR Q Q N seams A. wanna v ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,503,340 AUTO TRANSPORTING PASSENGER TRAIN George A. Warren, 270 Wildwood Ave., Worcester, Mass. 01602 Filed Sept. 11, 1967, Ser. No. 666,696 Int. Cl. B61d 1/06, 3/02, 47/00 U.S. Cl. 105-368 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A railroad car adapted to transport a number of autos and passengers including end loading arrangements and elevator means on the railroad car to lift the autos for dual level storage and an enclosed passenger carrying compartment for transportation convenience and comfort.

Background of the invention This invention was made to increase the safety and comfort of travelers particularly on long trips by providing a railroad car for simultaneous passenger and auto carriage. It is apparent that as the highways become more crowded with automobiles that some better means must be provided for mass transportation of passengers on long distance trips. It is also desirable to provide the convenience of local auto transportation at the end of the journey. This invention has been made to accomplish these ends by providing a railroad car adapted to accommodate a number of autos to be transported from one locality to another while also providing comfortable and safe space for a number of passengers, including the occupants of the autos being transported.

My invention is an improvement over known constructions of this type such as are represented by the constructions shown in the United States patents to Hutson 2,524,260 and King 2,690,141.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the preferred form of my invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation of the car shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a top plan view of the car of my invention;

FIGURE 4 is a view taken on line 44 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 5 is an end elevation of the car shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 6 is a side elevation of a modified form of my invention; and

FIGURE 7 is an end view of the car shown in FIG URE 6.

The preferred form of my invention is shown in FIG- URE 1, wherein a triple deck railroad car is shown having a conventional flat bed 10, supported on the usual truck and wheel assemblies 11 and is provided with all of the standard braking and draft gear. Integral with the bed of the car is a support frame having a plurality of spaced vertically extending columns 12 adapted to carry an auto storage deck 13 above the bed and a passenger compartment 14 above the deck 13.

The columns 12 are spaced apart on opposite sides of bed 10 a distance to permit conventional sized autos to be driven into the storage area on bed 10 from either end of the railroad car and a suitable loading dock is provided at each terminal for this purpose. In large stations a dual level means may be provided to expedite the loading and unloading of decks 10 and 13. At other locations, however, this may not be economical and for this purpose the railroad car is provided with an auto lift 15, best seen in FIGURES 2, 3 and 6.

Referring to FIGURE 3, the auto lift 15 includes the pair of track members 16 onto which an auto may be 3,503,340 Patented Mar. 31, 1970 ice driven. The track members are mounted for vertical movement on suitable pulley means which are not shown and are operated by an electric motor to raise and lower autos from the bed 10 to deck 13. The lift tracks are supported from vertical posts 17 disposed at its four corners and horizontal frame members complete the lift frame. The vertical posts are each provided with a flange 19 at the lower end thereof adapted to be welded to bed 10. In the preferred support for the auto lift I provide an additional frame means including vertical post 20, see FIGURE 6, and horizontal struts 27 to engage the outside edges of posts 17 to stiffen the structure. The lift may be operated as indicated above to convey autos to and from the upper deck during loading of the railroad car and as shown in FIGURE 1, also serves to provide additional storage capacity for two autos when the railroad car is in use.

In the form of the invention shown in FIGURE 1, a passenger compartment 14 is disposed above the main body of the second storage deck. This compartment is designed to be fitted with comfortable seating means, toilet facilities, vending machines, heating and air conditioning means, etc. Normal access to this compartment is provided by the disappearing stairways 20 and 21. These steps may be hinged at their upper ends and suitable electrical or hydraulic motors 22 as shown in FIGURE 6 may be provided to move the steps to operative position or to storage position while loading the autos onto the railroad car.

For safety sake, the passenger compartment is provided at each end with emergency exits 23. The exits each communicate with the upper ends of ladders 24. Side doors 25 may also be provided for ready access to the passenger compartment in those stations having plural level ramps for loading, but in the smaller stations it is necessary to first load or unload the decks 10 and 13 before swinging steps 20 and 21 into operative position.

The passenger compartment is, of course, fully enclosed and is built to have sound insulation as well as to be fireproof. This construction provides the ultimate in safety and comfort. Also because of its disposition atop the vertical support posts 12, the passenger is assured a maximum view of the surrounding countryside, which increases the pleasure of the trip. If desired, the passenger compartment can be provided with sleeping facilities.

These railroad cars are adapted to be loaded either singly at a small station or at more popular locations, a series of cars may be brought into position before a loading ramp. Each end of each of the railroad cars is provided with a plurality of draw plates or gangplank-like members 26. These draw plates are adapted to be nor mally fixed in an upright position as shown in FIGURE 1, but when autos are to be loaded onto the railroad car, they are lowered to a horizontal position to provide one track for the auto to run on. A corresponding draw plate is situated at the loading ramp for providing a second track over which the auto may be driven. At the opposite end of the railroad car, two additional draw plates are carried and when more than one railroad car is to be loaded, suitable track means are thus provided so that autos can be driven from the loading ramp onto the first railroad car and continue on down a line of such cars to be positioned on the railroad car to which it has been assigned.

In using the preferred form of the invention, a series of railroad cars may be loaded at a single station as above described and the elevator means 15 on each car assists in the dispatching operation. By making use of the auto lifts, the first half of the loading operation does not have to be efiiciently scheduled, the auto need only be tagged to show its destination and is then driven down the line of railroad cars to one destined for the desired station, the auto is then lifted onto the second deck of that car while other cars may pass below it and roll onto the railroad cars that are more remote from the loading dock. This system of loading autos may be continued until all the second deck positions are filled, then a more carefully planned loading procedure must be followed to send the autos for storage on the first decks, in the specific sequence in which the cars are disposed. After all of the autos have been loaded onto their respective railroad cars, the passengers may enter compartment 14 through doors 25, or when the steps 20 and 21 are lowered into position, the passengers may mount them to climb into compartment 14.

While compartment 14 is primarily designed to accommodate the passengers from the autos stored below, additional space can be made available for ordinary passenger traffic. Because of the sightseeing ability inherent in the elevated disposition of the passenger compartment, undoubtedly many passengers will prefer such accommodations.

When the loaded railroad car has been picked up by a train and delivered over the rails to its destination, it is contemplated that the railroad car or a series of such cars will be disconnected from the train and delivered to an unloading dock or ramp while the rest of the train continues onto other destinations. When properly located, the plates 26 are lowered to their horizontal positions to form tracks for the autos and they may be driven off of the train. If only one level of ramp means is provided at the unloading station, the lower deck space is first emptied and then auto lift means is utilized to clear the second level of deck space 13.

Although the modern auto is built relatively low to the ground, a two deck railroad car with a passenger compartment on top, as shown in FIGURE 1, may be a few feet higher than the standard car structures found on many railroads. If this extra height is objectionable, a single deck for auto storage with a second deck for passengers can be constructed as shown in FIGURE 6. It will be seen -that this railroad car, like the one shown in FIGURE 1 is also provided with an auto lift 15 that makes it possible to store one more auto on the second level while at the same time providing a certain degree of flexibility in the sorting and loading process of a series of railroad cars, as more fully described above.

The operation of the railroad car of my invention is obvious from the description given above. The autos to be transported are driven onto the railroad car over a pair of draw plates 26 that are aligned with the auto tracks. The autos may be driven onto one railroad car from either end or may be driven onto a series of such railroad cars positioned before a loading ramp. The autos are positioned in place on a car going to the desired destination, the autos being sorted out and delivered to a proper storage space by making use of the individual auto lifts on the several railroad cars.

When the railroad cars are loaded, the autos are normally checked and otherwise fixed in place and the draw plates are raised to their vertical positions. When the passengers have gotten aboard, and the railroad car coupled to a train, the autos and passengers are delivered to their destinations in safety and comfort whether the trip be 200or 1500 miles, thus eliminating all chances of accidents happening from driver fatigue while completing the journey at a faster rate of speed.

It will be understood that all of the features in claims of this application may be applied with equal facility to the construction of toys, including a toy railroad car and toy automobiles constructed substantially as shown and described in the present application. Some of the details of construction would, of course, be necessarily omitted from a toy construction, but the toy might even include miniature people associated with the automobiles and residing in the passenger enclosure.

Other advantages flowing from the use of my invention are obvious. It is contemplated that modifications of my invention may occur to those skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A railroad car adapted to form one of a series of cars for transporting autos and passengers in a train, comprising an elongated bed supported on draft gear, means to load or unload autos at either end longitudinally onto and off a bed by movement along the bed to and from a storage position, first and second storage levels for a plurality of autos over the bed, an auto elevator integral with said bed for raising and lowering an auto, said auto elevator functioning to deliver autos serially to said second level from the first level to load the railroad car, and from the second level to the first level to unload the railroad car, a third storage level comprising a passenger compartment situated in an elevated position over said bed so that a plurality of autos can be stored on the railroad car below it, said passenger compartment elevated for scenic viewing and having a plurality of means for ingress and egress, said' means for ingress and egress including doors in the side, at least at one end and in the floor of the passenger compartment, upwardly retractable steps normally extending through the auto storage spaces to provide maximum width for longitudinal movement of the autos to their storage position, said steps being movable into said normal position for use in climbing into and out of the passenger compartment after the autos have been moved a long the bed, said steps leading from the several levels, said doors at least at one end of the passenger compartment providing an emergency exit and said railroad car having external ladder means positioned adjacent said emergency exit.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,196,568 8/1916 MacFadden -340 2,146,203 2/ 1939 Demarest 105-368 2,211,469 8/1940 King 105-340 2,589,997 3/1952 Dean et al. 105-340 2,659,318 11/1953 Steins et al. 105-368 3,119,350 1/1964 Bellingher. 105-368 3,182,609 5/1965 Borger et al. 105-368 3,370,552 2/1968 De Podesta et al. 105-368 DRAYTON E. HOFFMAN, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 105-340

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