Long rail pick-up and delivery system

#A fundamental aspect of operating a safe and efficient rail system involves routine maintenance of the rail line itself. This maintenance can involve upkeep associated with the support structure for the rail line, such as replacing rail ties or ballast upkeep below the rail line. Alternatively, the maintenance can involve maintaining the rails themselves. The rails suffer wear and tear associated with use as well as exposure to harsh environmental conditions, such as heat, rain, snow and ice. Rails having a minimal amount of wear can usually be reground without adversely effecting the functional and safety characteristics of the rail. However, as the rails wear beyond a point in which they can be safely reground or the rails suffer irreparable damage, the worn or damaged rails must be replaced by new rails.

#In general, the process of replacing worn or damaged rails involves removing the used rails from the railroad ties and placing the rails such that they lie adjacent the railway bed. Once the old rails have been removed, new rails can be placed over and attached to the railroad ties and the ends of the new rails are joined to form an operable rail line. The old rails can be picked up and transported to a mill for repair or recycling.

#In order to reduce the time for removal of old track and installation of new track, the rails are fabricated in lengths of up to a quarter mile in length. By manufacturing rails of this length, the number of joining operations which must be performed at rail ends is significantly reduced. As the joining process can be one of the most time intensive portions of laying new track, reducing the amount of joining connections leads to a significant cost reduction in the form of reduced labor expenditures. While removing and installing rail of these lengths can result in significant cost savings, the use of such long rail requires the use of specialized equipment capable of handling the increased length and corresponding increased weight of the rails.

#The invention may be more completely understood in consideration of the following detailed description of various embodiments of the invention in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

#FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a long rail pick-up and delivery system.

#FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a power car and work unit for use with the long rail pick-up and delivery system of FIG. 1.

#While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

#An embodiment of a long rail pick-up and delivery system 100 is illustrated in FIG. 1. Long rail pick-up and delivery system 100 generally consists of an integrated power plant 200, a rail transport train 300, a work unit 400, and a gantry system 700. Long rail pick-up and delivery system 100 can be configured for use with a variety of rail sizes, for example 112-pound to 141-pound rail in lengths up to one-quarter mile.

#Integrated power plant 200 generally comprises a diesel locomotive 202, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. An example of a suitable diesel locomotive 202 can be a turbocharged, modified 6-axle locomotive design with a horsepower rating of 3,000 horsepower. In alternative embodiments, integrated power plant 200 can consist of a plurality of diesel locomotives, for example a first locomotive rated for 3,000 horsepower and a second locomotive rated for 3,000 horsepower for a combined power rating of 6,000 horsepower. Based on rail grade and operating conditions, it will be understood that a variety of combinations of locomotives could be utilized to provide suitable tractive effort to accomplish rail loading and unloading as will be described below. In a preferred embodiment, integrated power plant 200 has sufficient power to allow the long rail pick-up and delivery system 100 to travel at speeds approaching sixty (60) mph.