Door edge protector

A bumper panel having first and second attachment surfaces, a contact plateau and first and second sloped surfaces attaching the attachment surfaces to the contact plateau for application in an autorack railcar wherein the bumper panel is disposed to cushion the impact between a vehicle door edge and the side walls of the railcar.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to door edge protectors, and, more particularly, to 
protective devices placed inside autorack railroad cars to protect against 
direct impact between the door of a vehicle within the autorack car and 
the side wall of the autorack car when the vehicle door swings open, and 
thus, to inhibit damage to the car. 
Railroad cars are widely used in the United States and other countries to 
transport vehicles such as automobiles, trucks and the like from 
manufacturing plants to distribution centers. Such railroad cars are 
referred to in the trade as autoracks. An example of a prior art autorack 
car is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,426,704, entitled "Deck Section Lock 
Structure". 
Autorack cars typically include a pair of side walls comprising a number of 
substantially rectangular, perforated side panels fixed between a series 
of vertical posts. Between adjacent vertical posts, a number of panels may 
span the height of the car, from the roof-supporting roof rail at the top 
to the load-bearing side sills at the bottom. The side panels are 
typically perforated so that exhaust fumes from the vehicles do not 
accumulate to an unacceptable level during the loading and unloading of 
the vehicles. The side panels also may be corrugated for increased 
rigidity and are generally supported by metal plates or brackets extending 
from the vertical posts. The side panels typically do not abut each other, 
but rather are sized to leave a small horizontal gap between vertically 
adjacent side panels or between a side panel and a roof rail or side sill. 
The side panels are also sized to permit a small gap between the vertical 
edges of the side panel and the vertical posts between which the side 
panel is disposed. An example of a sidewall comprising vertically adjacent 
panels is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,936,227, entitled "End Door For 
Rail Car." 
One problem that has arisen with the use of such autorack cars has been 
that those who are loading and unloading the vehicles into the cars 
sometimes cause damage to the vehicles by opening the vehicle doors far 
enough that the edge of the vehicle door strikes the metallic side wall of 
the autorack car. If sufficient force is used, this contact may scratch 
the paint off the cars or otherwise damage the finish, or may even dent 
the doors of the vehicle. 
Some have attempted to allay this problem by applying mastic-backed tape 
along the inside of the autorack side wall. These attempts have been 
largely unsuccessful for a number of reasons. In particular, the tape may 
not adhere well to the side wall, particularly in response to extreme 
weather conditions, the tape has a very limited functional duration, and 
when the side panels are eventually removed for regalvanization, the tape 
must be completely and expensively removed by applying a special solvent 
to the remaining adhesive. 
Others have stretched a nylon belt or rubber hose completely across the 
length of the autorack car, supported by the ends of the car and supports 
attached to the vertical posts. Many such belts or hoses have covered an 
insufficient area of the side wall to insure against direct metal-to-metal 
contact for different sized vehicles. Further, such belts have stretched 
and lost tension over time, causing the belts to sag and lose their 
ability to prevent contact between the vehicle doors and the side walls. 
Efforts to repeatedly retension the belts by ratcheting, and subsequently 
replacing the belts have proven expensive. 
Methods such as attaching large rubber mats to the side wall panels and 
coating the side wall panels with a thin layer of spray-on foam have also 
failed to provide adequate protection for the vehicle doors. Furthermore, 
due to regulations regarding the cross-sectional size and shape of 
railroad cars, the autoracks cannot be widened so that the vehicle doors 
cannot reach the sides of the autorack car. Thus, feasible solutions must 
be substantially limited to the constraints of current autorack cars. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a series of 
bumper panels and related assembly for attaching the bumper panels along 
the interior of an autorack railroad car. The bumper panels serve to 
cushion the impact between a door edge of a vehicle and one of the side 
walls. At least one of the bumper panels comprises an attachment surface 
attachable to one of the side walls of the autorack car, a contact plateau 
disposed substantially perpendicularly to the decks of the autorack car, 
and a surface extending from the attachment surface to the contact 
plateau. The bumper panel is disposed within the autorack car such that 
the contact plateau is generally more proximate to the center of the 
autorack car than is the attachment surface, thus facilitating the contact 
plateau to first contact a vehicle door edge which is swung open from 
inside the car and inhibit the door edge from striking the generally 
metallic sides of the autorack car.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
The invention is preferably embodied as a bumper panel assembly for 
cushioning the impact between the door edge of a vehicle located on an 
autorack railroad car and the side wall of the car. 
The railroad car is preferably a tri-level or bi-level autorack car, 
examples of which are schematically depicted in FIGS. 1 and 12 
respectively. The car may extend longitudinally between a pair of wheel 
trucks and comprises a support structure including a pair of vertical side 
walls which are supported by side sills. The car typically includes a 
roof, supported by a pair of roof rails extending along the tops of the 
side walls. The side walls may include a series of spaced vertical posts 
extending from the side sills up to the roof rails, with one or more side 
panels supported and vertically aligned between adjacent posts. The posts 
may be supported at the side sills by trapezoidal post supports and at the 
roof rails by triangular post supports. 
The side panels preferably have many perforations therein so that when 
vehicles are driven into the railroad cars, carbon monoxide produced by 
the vehicles may escape. The non-peripheral portions of the panels may 
also be corrugated for increased bending rigidity. 
Where more than one side panel is present between adjacent posts, as in 
FIGS. 1 and 12, there may be a top side panel disposed vertically adjacent 
to the roof rail, a bottom side panel disposed vertically adjacent to the 
side sill, and a number of adjacent intermediate panels disposed between 
the top side panel and the bottom side panel. 
The side panels are preferably supported between the posts by metal 
brackets which extend from the posts. Due to the dimensions of the 
brackets, the side panels do not abut each other edgewise; nor do they 
contact the posts, the roof rails, or the side sills. Thus, between 
adjacent panels, an interpanel gap is formed. Between the top panel and 
the roof rail, a top gap is formed. Between the bottom panel and the side 
sill, a bottom gap is formed. Between the panels and the vertical posts, 
vertical gaps are formed. 
The bumper panel system preferably comprises multiple levels of 
substantially continuous abutting bumper panels attached to each of the 
side walls at an appropriate height to inhibit contact between the vehicle 
door and the side wall of the autorack car when the vehicle door is swung 
open. 
As seen in FIG. 1 the tri-level autorack car 10 has three decks for 
supporting vehicles thereon, a bottom deck 19 being supported by the side 
sills 12 and middle and top decks, 20 and 21 respectively, being supported 
at the vertical posts 16. Four rectangular side panels 18, each being 
corrugated and perforated in its non-peripheral region, are vertically 
aligned from the side sill 12 to the roof rail 14 between adjacent 
vertical posts 16. 
The vertical posts 16 define car segments of varying lengths from one end 
of each symmetric autorack car 10 to the opposite end. The first and last 
sets of four side panels comprise the end segments 50 on each autorack 
car. The segments adjacent to the end segments 50 are the short segments 
52. All the segments more central than the short segments 52 are 
intermediate segments 54. In the preferred embodiments, different 
combinations of bumper panels are employed within the various segments to 
most efficiently fill the space between the vertical posts 16. 
Between the bottom deck 19 and middle deck 20, inside the short segment 52, 
cross-braces 56 provide additional stability to the autorack car, above 
the wheel trucks. 
Within the end segment 50, at an appropriate vehicle door height above the 
bottom deck 19, are two horizontally abutting long bumper panels 22 
affixed to the side wall, in particular to the bottom side panel. The long 
bumper panels 22 are shown in greater detail in FIGS. 3A and 3B. The 
bumper panel 22 closest to the end of the car is slightly higher than the 
other because the ramps on which the vehicles are driven to enter and exit 
the autorack car are angled upward from the bottom deck 19, thereby 
raising the level of the center of the vehicle. 
Above the middle deck 20, another two long bumper panels 22 horizontally 
abut, this time at the same height, and the panels 22 are affixed to both 
of the intermediate panels, spanning the gap therebetween. 
The vehicles that are supported by the top deck 21 have somewhat less space 
than those on the lower and middle decks because the geometric constraints 
of the autorack car requires that the top of the car be somewhat tapered. 
Thus, an opened vehicle door on the top deck 21 strikes higher off the 
supporting deck 21 than do vehicle doors on decks below. Two horizontally 
abutting roof bumper panels 26 which are attached to both the side wall 
(top side panel) and the autorack car roof are employed in the end segment 
50. The roof bumper panels 26 are shown in greater detail in FIGS. 4A and 
4B. 
In order to cover the vertical post 16 between the end segment 50 and the 
short segment 52, there are specially fitted bumper panels attached at 
each level. Along the roof rail 14, an upper post bumper panel 32 abuts 
the roof bumper panels 26 on either side and fits over the junction 
between the post 16 and the roof rail 14. The upper post bumper panel 32 
is depicted in greater detail in FIGS. 5A and 5B. Above the middle deck 
20, the post 16 is covered by a mid-post bumper panel 30 which abuts 
adjacent bumper panels. The mid-post bumper panel 30 is shown in greater 
detail in FIGS. 6A and 6B. 
Just above the bottom deck 19, the vertical posts which sandwich the short 
segment 52 are covered by abutting left and right cross-brace bumper 
panels, 34 and 36 respectively, which also cover the diagonal cross-brace 
members 56. The cross-brace bumper panels are shown in greater detail in 
FIGS. 8A and 8B. The short segment 52 also has one long bumper panel 22 
spanning most of the middle level and one roof bumper panel 26 spanning 
the upper level. 
Within the intermediate segments 54, two abutting short bumper panels 24 
span most of both the middle and bottom levels. The short bumper panel 24 
is depicted in greater detail in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Spanning most of the top 
level are two abutting roof bumper panels 26. 
Posts between intermediate segments 54 are covered on the top level and 
middle level as are the other posts. On the bottom level, there are no 
cross-brace members to account for, so a lower post bumper panel 28 is 
used to cover the post and trapezoidal post support 58. The lower post 
bumper panel 28 is shown in greater detail in FIGS. 7A and 7B. 
As seen in FIG. 1, a shear panel protector 40 is attached along the roof 
rail 14 adjacent the end of the series of roof bumper panels 26, extending 
the length of protection along the roof rail 14. The shear panel protector 
40, as seen in perspective in FIG. 9, is shaped as a truncated wedge and 
is preferably a deformable plastic piece which may absorb the energy of 
impact with a vehicle door. 
Another preferred embodiment of the invention is for application in a 
bi-level autorack railroad car, as seen in FIG. 12. The basic construction 
of the bi-level car 110 is similar to that of the tri-level autorack, but 
only two decks are present, a bottom deck 119 at the level of the side 
sills 12 and a top deck 121 approximately half way up the height of the 
car 110. Both cars employ the same basic vertical post 16 and side panel 
18 array structure. Because there is more vertical space between decks in 
the bi-level car, such a car may carry taller vehicles inside. 
The preferred bumper panels employed in the bi-level car 110 are only 
slightly different than those of the tri-level car. In particular, the 
bumper panels just above the bottom deck 19 of the tri-level car 10 
substantially correspond in length and type to those just above the bottom 
deck 119 of the bi-level car 110. Similarly, the bumper panels just above 
the middle deck 20 of the tri-level car 10 substantially correspond in 
length and type to those just above the top deck 21 in the bi-level car 
110. Because the bi-level car 110 has more vertical space between decks, 
the roof bumper panels 26 and the upper post bumper panels 32 of the 
tri-level embodiment do not have analogs in the bi-level embodiment. 
In particular, within the end segment 50 of the bi-level car 110, two 
abutting long panels 122 span most of the segment at both levels. The 
bi-level embodiments of the long panels 122 are shown in greater detail in 
FIGS. 14A and 14B. All vertical posts 16 are covered on the upper level by 
post bumper panels 130. The posts are also covered by post bumper panels 
130 on the lower level where there are no cross-brace members 156 
supported by the post. The post bumper panel 130 is depicted in greater 
detail in FIGS. 15A and 15B. 
As in the tri-level car, both posts adjacent the short segment 52 support 
cross-brace members 156. Therefore, at the lower level it is preferable to 
cover the trapezoidal post supports 58, the posts 16, the cross-brace 
members 156 and part of the cross-brace plate 157. Thus, as seen in FIG. 
12, left and right cross-brace bumper panels 134 and 136, respectively, 
are used on the lower level of the bi-level car 110 at the posts 16 
adjacent to the short segment 52. 
Referring generally now to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 5A, 5B, 6A, 6B, 
7A, 7B, 8A, 8B, 13A, 13B, 14A, 14B, 15A, 15B, 16A, and 16B, which depict 
variously shaped bumper panels, there are several features common to a 
number of these bumper panels. 
All the bumper panels in the inventive bumper panel system have at least 
one attachment surface 78 which, when the bumper panel is installed on the 
autorack car, will substantially contact one of the side panels 18. 
Furthermore, all such bumper panels have a contact plateau 72 which is 
substantially perpendicular to the ground and the decks of the autorack 
car. The contact plateau 72 usually serves as the first and primary region 
of contact for the vehicle door as it is swung open, and thus usually 
protrudes the farthest toward the center of the car. The contact plateau 
72, which should not contact the side wall of the autorack directly when 
unbiased, can deform to absorb most, or preferably all, of the energy of 
the swung door, before the contact plateau 72 deforms sufficiently to 
contact the side wall. 
The contact plateau 72 on each bumper panel is translated out of the plane 
of the attachment surface 78 by at least one substantially sloped surface 
70. The sloped surface 70, like all the other parts of the bumper panels, 
is preferably integral with adjacent sections of the panel. Also, it is 
within the scope of the invention that the sloped surface 70 be 
non-planar, such as for example, if it were substantially cylindrical or 
even spherical. In light of this, it is intended that the term "sloped" in 
the claims should not be restricted to planar surfaces. Likewise, the 
sloped surface 70 need not extend monotonically from the attachment 
surface 78 to the contact plateau 72. Rather, there may be intermittent 
regions within the sloped surface 70 where the gradient reverses or 
mathematical "saddle points" exist. 
Installment of the bumper panels may be performed in a number of ways, but 
preferably, the attachment surface will have at least one opening or slot 
66 therein which may be aligned with a perforation in one of the side 
panels 18 so that a retainer button may be inserted through the aligned 
slot 66 and perforation. FIGS. 11A and 11B show the preferred retainer 
button in detail. 
The legs 94 of the preferred button 90 are forced through the slot 66, the 
edges of the slot 66 and the perforation forcing the barbed ends 96 of the 
button 90 relatively closer to one another. As the head of the button 92 
comes flush with the attachment surface 78 around the edges of the slot 
66, the barbed end 96 emerges from the perforation, permitting the legs 94 
to biasedly separate. Thus, the barbed ends 96 and the head 92 of the 
button 90 prevent the button 90 from sliding in either direction. The 
shape of the preferred button is not considered to limit the scope of the 
invention, and other types of fasteners or attachment mechanisms, such as 
bolts and the like, may be used within the scope of the invention. 
Preferably, the slot 66 is within a countersink in the bumper panel so that 
the head 92 of the button 90 does not protrude from the plane of the 
attachment surface 78 after the bumper panel is installed. In the 
preferred embodiments, three types of countersinks are used, though others 
would also be acceptable. Where there is a single slot 60, a single-slot 
countersink 60 is employed. Where two slots 60 are present, a double-slot 
diagonal countersink 62 is used. The diagonal countersink 62 permits the 
two slots 60 therein to be at different levels, facilitating better 
alignment with a perforation in the corresponding side panel. In some 
bumper panels, as seen from the figures, the position of the countersink 
necessitates an extending ear 80 around the countersink. 
The roof bumper panel 26 and the upper post bumper panel 32 which are 
attached to the roof of the car as well as to one of the side panels have 
additional parts for attaching to the roof. These panels, 26 and 32, are 
shown in detail in FIGS. 4A and 4B and 5A and 5B. 
Each panel 26, 32 preferably has a sloped attachment surface 74 which is 
oblique to the contact plateau 72 and angles inwardly toward the center of 
the car 10 as well as upwardly toward the roof. Within the sloped 
attachment surface 74 there are two triple-slot horizontal countersinks 
64, each such countersink 74 housing three linearly adjacent slots 66. 
These slots 66 may be aligned with the hole 88 in the roof panel clip 82. 
The roof panel clip 82 is shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B. 
This alignment permits the panels 26 and 32 to be attached to the roof 
panel clip 82, which in turn is attached to the roof rail 14. The hook 
arms 86 of the clip 82 engage the roof rail 14 so that the hole 88 extends 
upwardly into alignment with one of the three slots 66 in the triple-slot 
countersink 64. At the remote end of the sloped attachment surface 74 from 
the contact plateau 72 is an integral hook 76 for providing support 
against the roof of the car 10. 
The bumper panels may be made of a number of materials, but should be 
deformable and resilient. Preferably, the bumper panels are injection 
molded from UV-stabilized, black, retardant Kaneka Energy Absorbing Foam. 
Similarly, the size of the bumper panels may vary considerably within the 
scope of the invention. Preferably, however, they are approximately 15 
inches tall in the tri-level embodiment and approximately 20 inches tall 
in the bi-level embodiment. Preferably, the contact plateau is 
approximately 4.5 inches tall in both the tri-level and bi-level 
embodiments. 
The invention is further described in the following claims.