US669876A

US669876A - Convertible freight-car.

Info

Publication number: US669876A
Application number: US2082600A
Authority: US
Inventors: Oscar Benjamin Critchlow
Original assignee: JOHN B FITZPATRICK; LUCIEN P CURTIS
Current assignee: JOHN B FITZPATRICK; LUCIEN P CURTIS
Priority date: 1900-06-19
Filing date: 1900-06-19
Publication date: 1901-03-12
Anticipated expiration: 1918-03-12

Description

No. 669,876. Patented mar. l2, lool.

o. cmTcHLow.

CONVERTIBLE FREIGHT CAR.

(Applicatin Illed June 19, 190cm LWN AQ/ m k Y .EN MMX N v\ I )i i N k m w E mm No. 669,676. Patented Mar. l2, mol. o. B. cmTcHLow.

CONVERTBLE FREIGHT CAR.

(Applicaifm led June 19, IBOOJ (No Model.)

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.OSCAR BENJAMIN CRITCHLOW, OF LEADVILLE, COLORADO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO JOHN B. FITZPATRICK, OF SAME PLACE,` AND LUCIEN P.

CURTIS, OF DENVER, COLORADO.

CONVERTIBLE FREIGHT-GAR.`

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent o. 669,876, dated March 12, 1901.

Application filed June 19, 1900. Serial No. 20,826. (No model.)

To all whom. it may concern;

Be it known that I, OSCAR BENJAMIN CRITGHLOW, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Leadville, in the county of Lake and State of Colorado, have invented a new and Improved Convertible Freight-Car, of which the following is a full, clear, and eXact description.

The object of the invention is to provide a ro new and improved convertible freight-car which is simple and durable in construction and arranged to permit of conveniently converting it from an ordinary fiat-bottom boX- car used for carrying freight to a hopperbottom box-car for carrying grain and the like.

The invention consists of novel features and parts and combinations of the same, as will be fully described hereinafter and then zo pointed out in the claims.

A practical embodiment of the invention is represented in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate cor- 2 5 responding parts inall the views.

Figure l is aside elevation of the improvement with parts broken out. Fig. 2 is a sectional plan view of the same with parts broken out and parts removed. Fig. 3 is an enlarged transverse section of the improvement arranged as a hopper-bottom box-car. Fig. 4 is an enlarged side elevation of one end of the conveyer-screw. Fig. 5 is an enlarged transverse sectionof the fastening 3 5 means for the cha mber-door, and Fig. 6 is an enlarged perspective view of one of the sections of the bottom.

The improved car hasa box-body A, consisting of floor-timbers A', sides A2, ends A3, and a top A4, as is plainly illustrated in the drawings, and approximately of ordinary construction. The sides A2 of the box-body are provided with suitable doors B for giving access to the interior of said body, and the bottom of the box-body is formed of sections C, adapted torest either on the floor-timbers A to form the bottom for an ordinary iiatbottom box-car, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 3, or the said sections C may be arranged in an inclined position extending from the sides A2 of the box-body inwardly and downwardly to within a short distance of the middle of the car to form a hopper-bottom box-car, as indicated in full lines in Fig. 3. The inner ends of the sections C rest on the central longitudinal beams of the floor-timbers A,While the outer upper ends are formed on their under side with projections C', adapted to hook upon supports D, extending longitudinally on the inner face of the sides A2 6o of the box-body, said supports having removable portions extending across the dooropenings for the doors B.

Each section C is provided on top with a suitable ring C2, adapted to be taken hold of by the operator to conveniently place the bottom-sections in either the inclined or the horizontal position above referred to, and over the joint of the upper ends' of the sections with the sides of the car extends a longitndi- 7o nal strip of canvas C2, preferably fastened to the sides of the car to prevent grain or like loose material from lodging between the sides of the car and the upper ends of the sections C.

The space between the central longitudinal beams of the floor-timbers A and into which discharge the lower ends of the bottom-sections C when in an inclined position forms a conveyer-casing E, in which extends a conveyer-screw F, journaled in suitable bearings 8o carried by the Hoor-timbers A'. The casing E is connected with a suitable dischargespout G, located either at the middle or one at each end of the car-body, so that when the conveyer-screw is rotated the grain is moved in the casing E to the said spout or spouts for discharging the grain from the box-body.

Each outer end of the shaft of the conveyerscrew F is tapped to receive the threaded end 9o of the shaft F of a pulley F2, adapted to be connected by belt with other machinery for imparting a rotary motion to the conveyerscrew for moving the grain to the spouts Gr, as above described. The shaft F/ is provided with a pin F3, adapted to abut against a lug F4 on the conveyer-screw shaft to prevent the pulley-shaft F from screwing too far into the conveyer-screw shaft.

When the grain is stored in the box-body roo A and the car is in transit, then the entrance to the space is closed by suitable slides H, mounted to slide transversely in suitable bearings in the floor-timbers A', and each slide H carries at its outer end a nut H', screwing on a screw-rod I, mounted to turn in suitable bearings in the floor-timbers A', a hand-wheel I' being on the outer end of the screwrod, as is plainly shown in Fig. 3. The hand-wheel I' extends in a chamber A5, formed in the floor-timbers A', and the outer side of said chamber consists of a door A6, hinged at A7 to the floor-timbers near the side A2 of the car. The door AG is normally locked-that is, during the time the car is in transit-and for this purpose the inner side of the door is provided with keepers J, engaged by catches J', secured on a shaft J2, extending longitudinally in the chamber A5 and journaled in suit-able bearings carried by the floor-timbers A'. On one outer end ot' the shaft J2 is secured a handle J2, adapted to be locked by a suitable lock or seal to the end of the car-body, so that unauthorized persons cannot turn the shaft J2 without'detection, and consequently the chamber A5 under normal conditions is closed and no access is had to the hand-wheel I'.

When it is desired to unload the car of its grain, then an authorized person unlocks the handle J3, so as to turn the shaft J2 and move the catches J' out of engagement with the keepers J. rlhe doors A6 are now swung open tol give access to the hand-Wheels I', which are now turned by the operator to turn the screws I and move the several slides H outward. l/Vhen this takes place, the grain in the car-body passes into the casing E and ismoved by the now-rotated conveyer-screw F to the discharge spout or spouts G, as 'previously explained.

In order to properly ventilate the car, suitable doors K are arranged in the sides of the car A2, near the upper ends thereof, and said doors are connected at their lower ends by hinges K' with the sides of said car and are held in either an open or closed position by links K2, pivoted to the sides of the said doors K. The doors K also form a hopper through which the car may be filled with grain.

In order to prevent the grain from falling through cracks between adjacent sections, I prefer to so form the sections that they will overlap at their sides, as indicated in Fig. 6.

It is understood that when the car is in transit the pulley F2is removed from the conveyer-screw and is stored, preferably, in the chamber A5, so that the conveyer-screw cannot be accidentally turned during the time the car is in transit.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentl. A convertible freight-car, comprising a box-bodyhaving longitudinal supports, and a Hoor for the body and adapted to be hung on said supports and extend in an inclined direction from the sides of the car-body to near the longitudinal middle thereof, the inner ends of the door resting on the longitudinal beams of the Hoor-timbers of the car, substantially as shown and described.

2. A convertible freight-car, comprising a box-body having supports extending longitudinally on the inner face of the sides of the box-body, and a iioor for the body made in sections and arranged to either extend in a horizontal position on the floor-supporting timbers, or hang with their outer ends on said longitudinal support and extend in an inclined direction from the sides of the carbody, with the inner-ends of the floor-sections resting on the central longitudinal beams of the floor-timbers, as set forth.

3. A convertible freight-car, comprising a box-body, having supports extending longitudinally on the inner face of the sides of the box-body, a floor for the body and made in sections having projections on their outer ends at the under side, the sections being arranged to either extend in a horizontal position on the floor-supporting timbers or hang with their outer projecting ends on said su pports, and extend from the sides of the carbody inward and downward in an inclined direction to the floor-timbers, with the inner ends of the licor-sections resting on the-central longitudinal beams of the licor-timbers,

the space between the said centra-l longitudi nal beams forming a conveyer-casing, into which discharge the lower ends of the loorsections when in an inclined position, and a conveyer-screw extending longitudinally in said casing, as set forth.

4. A convertible freight-car, comprising a box-body having longitudinal supports,a door for the body7 and made in sections arranged to either extend in a horizontal position on the floor-supporting timbers, or hang with their outer ends on said supports and extend from the sides of the car-body inward and downward in an inclined direction to the floor-timbers at or near the middle of the car, a conveyer-casing having a conveyer-screw at the middle of the car and into which discharge said floor-sections, and slides for closing said casing and manually controlled from the outside of the car, as set forth.

5. A convertible freight-car, comprising a box-body having longitudinal supports, a floor for the body and adapted to be hung on said supports and extend in an inclined direction from the sides of the car-body to near the middle thereof, and a strip of flexible material secured to the sides of the car and extending over the joint between the floor-sections and the sides of the car-body, as set forth.

6. Afreight-car havingabox-body provided on the inner face of its sides with longitudinally-extending supports, movable inclined Hoor-sections having projections on their under sides at their outer upper ends adapted to hook upon the said supports, a conveyercasing extending longitudinally in the bot- IOO IIO

tom of the car and into Which discharge said door-sections, a conveyer-screw in said conveyer-casing, and a discharge leading from the said casing, substantially as shown and described.

7. A freight-car having a box-body with movable inclined Hoor-sections, a conveyercasing in the bottom of the car and into which discharge said loor-sections,a conveyer-screw in said conveyer-casing, a discharge leading from said casing, and slides for closing said casing at the top thereof, as set forth.

8. A freight-car having a box-bod)1 With movable inclined door-sections, a conveyercasing in the bottom of the car and into which discharge said iloorsections,a conveyer-screw in said conveyercasing, a discharge leading from said casing, slides for closing said casing at the top thereof, each slide having a nut, a screw-rod mounted to turn and engaged by said nut, and a hand-Wheel for said screw-rod and extending in a normally closed and locked chamber on said car-body, as set forth.

9. A freight-car having a box-body with movable inclined Hoor-sections, a con veyercasing in the bottom of the car and into which discharge said floor-sections,aconveyer-screw in said conveyer-casing, a discharge leading from said casing, slides for closing said casing at the top thereof, each slide having a nut, a screw-rod mounted to turn and engaged by said nut, a hand-Wheel for said screw-rod the said hand-Wheel being located in a normally closed and locked chamber on the canbody, said chamber having a hinged doei-,and means for locking said door, as set forth.

lO. A freight-car having a conveyer-screw, and a removable pulley for the same, said pulley having a shaft provided with a threaded end adapted to screw in the tapped end of ihe shaft of the conveyer-screw, the shaft of the pulley being provided With a pin adapted to abut againsta lug on the conveyer-screw shaft for the purpose set forth.

l1. A freight-car, comprising a box-body having supports extending longitudinally on the inner face of the sides of the box-body, the said supports having removable portions extending across the openings for the doors in the sides of the cars, movable inclined Hoorsections engaging with their outer ends the said supports,a conveyer-casing in the bottom of the car and into Which discharge said floor-sections, and slides for closing said casing at the top thereof, as set forth.

l2. A freight-car having a box-body With movable inclined floor-sections, a conveyercasing in the bottom of the car and into which discharge said floor sections, a conveyer screw in said conveyercasing, a discharge leading from said casing, slides for closing said casing at the top thereof, means for moving the slides,the said means extending Within a chamber on the car-body, a hinged door for said chamber provided on the inner side with keepers and a shaft extending longitudinally in the chamber and mounted to turn, the said shaft being provided with catches adapted to engage the keepers on the door, as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

OSCAR BENJAMIN GRITCHLOW.

Witnesses:

MAURICE KAHN, JOHN B. FITZPATRICK.