Carrier assembly for use with a rotary railroad coupler system

In a rotary type railroad coupler system wherein a type-E coupler head and cylindrical shank are rotatively joined to a yoke collar by a retractable pin carried by said coupler system, said shank and said coupler head being held substantially horizontal by a carrier assembly connected to a striker casting of said coupler system, the improvement in said carrier assembly comprising,

• a carrier portion connected with said coupler striker casting, said carrier portion including a lateral slot formed in an upper horizontal member and groove means formed in said member and intersecting with said slot, said groove means and said slot providing access to an inner space within said carrier portion, and
• a saddle casting portion having an upper cradle area to supportively receive said coupler shank, lug means extending downwardly from said cradle area, said lug means slideable in said groove means and said slot of said carrier portion and being selectively placeable within said carrier portion inner space, said lug means having a lower engaging part to form an interference fit with said carrier portion horizontal member upon said lug means moving laterally to a nonaligning position with respect to said groove means to inhibit upward movement of said saddle casting portion and an upper vertical part to fit within said carrier portion slot and provide guidance to lateral movements of said saddle casting portion,
• said carrier assembly further comprising,
• said carrier portion formed integrally as part of said striker casting, said casting including a hollow body portion defined by spaced sidewalls joined to a forward facing peripheral flange, said flange defining an opening to said hollow body portion for disposition of said coupler shank and including a bottom flange portion connecting with side flange portions joined to flaired ends of said sidewalls, said bottom flange portion including an upper ledge forming in part said carrier portion horizontal member,
• said lateral slot dividing said ledge into a front section and a rear section and having ends terminating adjacent to said striker casting sidewalls,
• said groove means comprising a pair of spaced grooves formed in said ledge front section to connect said slot with a front step, said front step formed as part of said front ledge section and a front wall of said bottom flange portion and positioned parallel to said slot, and said groove means further comprising a pair of recesses formed in a bottom surface of said rear ledge section to align with said grooves respectively, said grooves and said recesses being equispaced on each side of a longitudinal axis of said coupler system, and
• said saddle casting portion including a downwardly extending front lip receivable in said front step upon said saddle casting portion lug means being disposed in said carrier portion inner space defined in part by said bottom flange portion front wall and a lower ledge connected thereto,
• wherein said saddle casting portion may be selectively disassembled from said carrier portion by aligning said saddle casting portion lug means with said carrier portion grooves, with disassembly being inhibited upon said lug means moving in said inner space to a nonaligning position with said grooves.

In a railroad car coupler system including an elongated sill having one end attached to a body of a railroad car, a striker attached to an outer end of said sill, a yoke carried within said striker, said yoke receiving an inner end of a shank having a coupler head assembly disposed at an outer end thereof, a rectangular-shaped spring box laterally disposed at an outer end of said striker, said box having an open top proximately aligned with a bottom of said sill, and a saddle assembly, the improvement therein comprising,

• an adapter having an elongated, hollow base and an upper flange attached to said base, said base disposed in said spring box with a bottom surface of said flange in contact with said top of said box to support said adapter, said flange being divided into a rear section and a front section by an elongated slot proximately aligned with a longitudinal axis of said adapter, a set of spaced, parallel grooves extending laterally across said front flange section, each said groove divided into a shallow front part and a deep rear part, said shallow and deep groove parts joining at a point proximately aligned with an inner surface of a front wall of said base, and spaced parallel, notches formed in said rear flange section to align with said grooves respectively, said notches terminating within said rear flange section at a point proximately aligned with an inner surface of a rear wall of said base at outer ends of said base rear wall, and
• a saddle casting portion having an upper cradle area to receive said shank of said coupler and spaced lugs extending downwardly from a bottom surface thereof and proximately aligning respectively with outer sides of said saddle casting portion, each said lug having an inverted T-shaped cross sectional configuration comprising an upper vertical part and a lower horizontal part, said lower horizontal parts passable through said grooves and notches in said adapter front and rear flange section with end walls of said lug lower horizontal portions lying substantially proximate to and guidable by said inner surfaces of said adapter front and rear wall at said outer ends of such, and a rib extending between said lugs, said rib disposable in said adapter flange slot with said rib and said lug upper vertical parts slidable within said slot,
• wherein said saddle casting portion may be assembled or disassembled from said adapter by alignment of said saddle casting portion lugs with said adapter grooves and notches and movement of said lugs therethrough with assembly or disassembly being inhibited upon said lugs being misaligned with said grooves and notches.