Hand brake for railroad cars

In a hand brake for railroad cars including a housing adapted to be mounted on a car, an operating shaft journalled in said housing for rotation about an axis extending longitudinally of said shaft, a winding drum journalled in said housing for rotational movement about said axis and including means for connecting a brake chain thereto for being wound up thereby, and means for coupling said operating shaft to said winding drum for rotating said winding drum about said shaft axis with a mechanical advantage to wind up the brake chain, the improvement comprising:

• a pair of annular bearing plates fixed to said housing in coaxial relation to said axis and one on either side of the housing,
• said winding drum being journaled on and between said bearing plates and defining an annular gear within same that is coaxial with said axis,
• said bearing plates each defining an internal gear coaxial with said axis,
• a sun gear keyed to said shaft for rotation therewith, with said sun gear being coaxial with said axis,
• a plurality of planetary gear assemblies disposed in said housing between said sun gear and said annular gear,
• said planetary gear assemblies each comprising:
• a central pinion gear portion meshing with said annular gear and a pair of side pinion gear portions disposed one on either side of said central gear portion and respectively meshing with the respective internal gears,
• and circular raceway surface means disposed about said axis in substantial concentric relation thereto on which said planetary gear assemblies ride for free rolling non-journalled orbiting movement about said sun gear,
• said gears comprising said coupling means.

In a wind up arrangement for hand brakes for railroad cars, including a housing adapted to be mounted on a car, an operating shaft journalled in said housing for rotation about an axis extending longitudinally of said shaft, a winding drum journalled in said housing for rotational movement about said axis and including means for connecting a brake chain thereto for being wound up thereby, and means for coupling said operating shaft to said winding drum for rotating said winding drum about said shaft axis with a mechanical advantage to wind up the brake chain, the improvement comprising:

• a pair of annular bearing portions fixed with respect to said housing in coaxial relation to said axis and one on either side of the housing,
• said winding drum being journalled on and between said bearing portions and defining an annular gear within same that is coaxial with said axis,
• said bearing portions each defining an internal gear coaxial with said axis and providing a bearing surface coaxial with said axis on and between which said winding drum is journalled,
• said bearing surfaces being of an equal diameter that has a dimension that exceeds the pitch diameters of said internal gears,
• a sun gear keyed to said shaft for rotation therewith, with said sun gear being coaxial with said axis,
• a plurality of planetary gear assemblies disposed in said housing between said sun gear and said annular gear,
• said planetary gear assemblies each comprising:
• a central pinion gear portion meshing with said annular gear and a pair of side pinion gear portions disposed one on either side of said central gear portion and respectively meshing with the respective internal gears,
• and circular raceway surface means disposed about said axis in substantial concentric relation thereto on which said planetary gear assemblies ride for free rolling non-journalled orbiting movement about said sun gear,
• said gears comprising said coupling means.