Railcar with lengthened container well
AssigneeGunderson LLC
InventorsGregory J. Saxton, John N. Niosi
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A railroad freight car with a lengthened container well, including an extended and reinforced well car unit side sill, and a method for lengthening a container well of a railroad freight car intended for carrying an intermodal cargo container. A side sill extension member is welded into position, between a body bolster at each end of the container well unit and a nearest container support assembly, and a container-well bottom assembly is lengthened at each end of the container well. A longitudinally-extending doubler plate may be welded to the longitudinally central portion of the side sill, to ensure sufficient rail clearance at mid-length of the car.
Claims11
A method of lengthening a container well for intermodal cargo containers in a car body of a railroad freight car, comprising:
- (a) while supporting a center portion of a car body, separating a first one of a pair of opposite end portions of the car body from the center portion by:
- (i) cutting each of a pair of opposite side sills, in an end portion of the container well, at a location between a body bolster of the respective one of the end portions of the car body and a container support assembly that is a nearest one of a plurality of container support assemblies located in the container wells;
- and
- (ii) removing a member of a container well bottom structure extending generally horizontally through the end portion of the container well between the same container support assembly and the body bolster;
- (b) moving the first end portion of the car body away from the center portion;
- (c) fastening a respective side sill extension structure into each of the pair of side sills, between the central portion of the car body and the first end portion, thereby forming a pair of extended opposite side sills each including an extension at the first end of said center portion;
- and
- (d) installing a replacement member in the container well bottom, extending the container well bottom structure to compensate for the side sill extension structure.
A method of lengthening a container well in a railroad freight car comprising:
- (a) cutting through each of a pair of laterally opposed container well side sill structures and thereby separating an end portion from a longitudinally central portion of each of said pair of side sill structures at both of a pair of locations near respective opposite ends of the container well, each of said locations being within 4 feet from a respective one of said opposite ends of the container well;
- (b) removing a portion of a horizontally extending well-bottom structure located between said side sill structures at each of said pair of locations;
- (c) installing a side sill extension portion having a predetermined length in each of said pair of opposed container well side sill structures at each of said pair of locations;
- and
- (d) installing a replacement portion having a greater length in said well-bottom structure at each of said pair of locations.
A container-well car unit including a pair of deep, longitudinally extending side sills spaced laterally apart from each other and defining a container well for intermodal freight containers, the container well unit comprising:
- (a) a pair of opposite side sills defining a container well having a pair of opposite ends;
- (b) a respective container support assembly attached to each of said opposite side sills near one of the opposite ends of the container well;
- (c) a side sill extension welded into each one of said opposite side sills and increasing a length of said one of said side sills between the respective container support assembly and a closer one of said opposite ends;
- and
- (d) an extended bottom structure at said one of said ends of said container well.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.