Weighing system for weighing railroad cars and their load
OwnerJon L. Stimpsoninventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system for weighing railroad cars and their load is disclosed. In virtually all railroad cars, there exists a disk on a bottom of a railroad car that fits or interfaces with a well in a wheel truck assembly at each end of the railroad car. A load cell is constructed having one surface to bear against the bottom of the disk on the railroad car, and an opposite surface for bearing against a bottom surface of the well in the wheel truck assembly. The output of the load cell is provided to a telemetry transmitter, which transmits an indication of weight to an operator of a crane or other loading appartus loading the railroad car.
Claims20
A weighing system for a railroad car comprising;
- a railroad car further comprising;
- at least a first wheel truck assembly located at one end of said railroad car and a second wheel truck assembly located at an opposite end of said railroad car,
- an interface between said railroad car and each said wheel truck assembly, said interface comprising at least a disk having a bottom surface, the disk mounted to said railroad car and a well in each said wheel truck assembly for receiving said disk, and for each said interface, said weighing system comprising;
- a ring fitted about a periphery of said disk,
- a load cell in a lower region of said ring, with an upper surface of said load cell bearing against said bottom surface of said disk, said load cell extending below said lower region of said ring so that said load cell rotatably fits in said well, with a lower surface of said load cell bearing against a bottom of said well,
- whereby as said railroad car is loaded, said upper surface of said load cell and said lower surface of said load cell are displaced with respect to each other, developing an electrical output representative of weight.
A weighing system for measuring weight of a railroad car and a load therein with a relatively high degree of accuracy, said railroad car having a disk mounted to a load-bearing region of a bottom of each end of the railroad car and a wheel truck assembly positioned at each said end of the railroad car, each said wheel truck assembly provided with a centrally located recess in an upper surface thereof for rotatably receiving a respective said disk, said weighing system comprising;
- a combined weight scale and load interface positioned between said disk on said railroad car and said recess in said wheel truck assembly, said weight scale and load interface comprising:
- a mounting ring for each said disk, said mounting ring fixedly mounted about a periphery of said disk so that a lower edge of said mounting ring extends below said disk,
- a load cell generally fixed within each said mounting ring, said load cell having an upper annular surface adjacent to a peripheral region constructed to closely fit within said ring, with said upper annular surface adapted to bear against a lower surface of said disk and against sides of said recess, laterally and rotatably connecting said railroad car and said wheel truck assembly, said load cell further having a lower central region fitted in a respective said recess so that shear displacement between said peripheral region and said central region is sensed and an electrical signal provided that is indicative of weight applied to that said load cell,
- a load bearing portion in coaxial relation with said central region, and fitted in said recess for distributing coaxial loads from said central region into said recess.
A method for fitting a railroad car and each wheel truck assembly associated therewith with weight sensing and load-transmitting apparatus for indicating weight of the railroad car and load therein while securely interfacing each said wheel truck assembly to said railroad car, said weight sensing and load-transmitting apparatus indicating weight to a resolution of about 500 pounds or so, and said railroad car having a load-transmitting disk at each end thereof for each said wheel truck assembly and a well in each said wheel truck assembly into which said disk is rotatably fitted, said method comprising the steps of:
- positioning a first load bearing member to bear on a lower surface of said disk and against side surfaces of said well,
- laterally restraining said first load bearing member with respect to said disk,
- positioning a second load bearing member to bear on a bottom surface of said well, said first load bearing member and said second load bearing member connected so that weight applied to said first load bearing member and said second load bearing member causes deflection, in direct relation with said weight, to occur between said first load bearing member and said second load bearing member,
- developing an electrical signal from said deflection indicative of said weight,
- summing said electrical signal from each said weight-sensing and load transmitting apparatus to develop a weight signal indicative of total weight of said railroad car and its load.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.