US 7,497,169 B2Granted

Rail road car truck and fittings therefor

AssigneeNational Steel Car Limited

InventorsJames W. Forbes, Jamal Hematian

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A rail road freight car truck has a truck bolster and a pair of side frames, the truck bolster being mounted transversely relative to the side frames. The mounting interface between the ends of the axles and the sideframe pedestals allows lateral rocking motion of the sideframes in the manner of a swing motion truck. The lateral swinging motion is combined with a longitudinal self steering capability. The self steering capability may be obtained by use of a longitudinally oriented rocker that may tend to permit resistance to deflection that is proportional to the weight carried across the interface. The truck may have auxiliary centering elements mounted in the pedestal seats, and those auxiliary centering elements may be made of resilient elastomeric material. The truck may also have friction dampers that have a disinclination to stick-slip behavior. The friction dampers may be provided with brake linings, or similar features, on the face engaging the sideframe columns, on the slope face, or both. The friction dampers may operate to yield upward and downward friction forces that are not overly unequal. The friction dampers may be mounted in a four-cornered arrangement at each end of the truck bolster. The spring groups may include sub-groups of springs of different heights.

Claims33

Dependent claims

A bearing adapter for installation between a bearing of a railroad car truck wheelset and a pedestal mounting of a railroad car truck sideframe, the wheelset bearing having an axis of rotation defining an axial direction, and first and second axially spaced apart bearing races contained within a round cylindrical bearing casing of the bearing, the bearing races extending about the axis in a circumferential direction, the pedestal mounting having a roof that, in operation, lies over the bearing, wherein said bearing adapter comprises:

a metal body having a pair of axially spaced apart end arches for engaging the bearing, and a first seat extending between the arches, said first seat being formed to engage the round cylindrical bearing casing of the wheel bearing, and a second seat for orientation facing toward the pedestal mounting roof;
said first seat including first and second side portions having surfaces conforming to, and for mating with, the round cylindrical bearing casing at circumferentially spaced apart locations on the round cylindrical bearing casing abreast of one of the bearing races;
said first seat including a central portion located circumferentially between said side portions, at least part of said central portion including a relief formed in said metal body;
and,
said bearing adapter being mountable on the bearing in a position in which said relief of said part of said central portion is located abreast of and above one of the bearing races and said first and second portions are located circumferentially to either side of top dead center of the bearing respectively, and, when so mounted, said first and second portions defining dominant load transfer interfaces from said bearing adapter into said bearing for vertical loads from the sideframe passed into said bearing adapter at said second seat circumferentially to either side of said relief.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 11/566,421Filed 4 Dec 2006 · division
Priority: CA 24346038 Jul 2003
Published: US 2007/0181033 A19 Aug 2007
Granted: 3 Mar 2009
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification14 codes

B61F 5/50
Constructional details of bogies; Connections between bogies and vehicle underframes; Arrangements or devices for adjusting or allowing…: other…
B61F 3/02
Types of bogies: with more than one axle
B61F 5/04
Arrangements permitting limited transverse relative movements between vehicle underframe or bolster and bogie; Connections between underframes…
B61F 5/12
Bolster supports or mountings: incorporating dampers

Family

Application10/888,788Parent of this division · filed 8 Jul 2004
US 2007/0181033 A1Pre-grant publication · published 9 Aug 2007
US 7,143,700 B2Parent of this division
US 2005/0022689 A1Published application
US 7,497,169 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.