Patent Abstract:
A dual hopper rail car is converted from a three-hopper rail car. The converted rail car includes a pair of hoppers with each hopper including a discharge opening for discharging contents of the hopper. A center sill, pair of top chords, a pair of side sills and a pair of side sheets extend along the length of the converted rail car and each includes a welded splice connection. The welded splice connection of each side sheet is adjacent and between a pair of side stakes with a tie plate extending between the pair of side stakes. The method of converting the three-hopper rail car to the two-hopper rail car includes: severing the three-hopper rail car into a first end section, a second end section and a center section that includes the center hopper and a portion of an adjacent hopper; removing the center section; and attaching the first end section to the second end section.

Full Description:
This application claims the benefit of United States Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/143,656 filed on Jul. 13, 1999 entitled “Converted Multiple Hopper Rail Car and Method For Making Same”, which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to multiple hopper rail cars and, more particularly, the present invention relates to a process of removing the center portion from a three-hopper 4,750 cubic foot capacity grain car and converting the rail car into a two-hopper 3,190 cubic foot capacity covered hopper rail car particularly suited for cement, aggregates, pearlite rock, ground slate and roofing granules. 
     2. Background Information 
     Covered multiple hopper cars of the type used to handle bulk shipments of particulate materials can be made in a wide range of sizes to accommodate different volumes of materials. However, in the interest of safety and to prevent overloading of tracks and bridges, limits are imposed on the gross loading of a rail car and its contents. Limits are also imposed on the overall height of a rail car and its load in order to keep the car&#39;s center of gravity within a prescribed limit. 
     The density of a particular product to be transported by a rail car can vary widely from low density plastic pellets having a density of about 28 pounds per cubic foot, to grain with a density of about 35 pounds per cubic foot and on to aggregate such as sand, gravel and cement having a density of about 90-100 pounds per cubic foot. To maximize load sizing and the efficiencies of handling, it has been common to build rail cars for specific commodities so that a specific approximate tonnage of a particular commodity can be transported in a single rail car. Thus, four-hopper rail cars are often used for handling light products, three-hopper rail cars are used for handling grain and two-hopper rail cars are used for handling cement, sand and gravel. Alternatively, a rail car can be manufactured which has smaller or larger hoppers, depending upon whether it is being designed to handle a certain weight of a high-density material or a low-density material. 
     A hopper rail car can have a useful life of 30-50 years. Therefore, it can and does happen that the existing stock of all types of hopper rail cars might periodically be out of balance with the current needs of a nation&#39;s economy. 
     This problem was addressed in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 4,696,237 (hereinafter “my &#39;237 patent”), which is incorporated herein by reference. My &#39;237 patent discloses a converted covered dual hopper rail car which is made by converting a rail car having three covered hoppers suitable for carrying a large volume of relatively low density commodity to a rail car having two hoppers suitable for carrying a relatively smaller volume of a high density commodity. Specifically, as disclosed in my &#39;237 patent, this is accomplished by: internally bracing an interior portion of one end of one hopper end section; severing an unwanted center hopper section from the two end hopper sections; removing the unwanted section; and reassembling and welding the free sections to each other. My earlier &#39;237 patent discloses that the vertical cutting and welding is horizontally offset at the upper side plate, and the side sill to provide a tab and notch locking arrangement for reinforcement. My &#39;237 patent also teaches the need to provide roof loading hatches which are provided with downwardly extending collar portions which limit the maximum loading height within the converted hoppers. 
     My &#39;237 patent was specifically directed toward the conversion of a 4,427 cubic foot capacity covered hopper rail car into a 3,148 cubic foot capacity rail car. Unfortunately, 4,427 cubic foot capacity covered hopper rail cars are not currently readily available and the resulting 3,148 cubic foot capacity rail car may not offer a maximum carrying capacity. There are several other significant problems with the converted rail car and method of my &#39;237 patent. Most significantly, the outlets in the resulting car were not properly positioned, which then required adapters to be utilized at the unloading sites for the resulting converted rail car. The use of additional adapters makes the converted rail car somewhat impractical. Additionally, the assembly processing time associated with my earlier invention could be improved. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is among the objects of the present invention to provide an improved converted hopper rail car suitable for carrying commodities such as cement, aggregates, pearlite rock, ground slate and roofing granules. It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved method of converting a multiple hopper rail car into a hopper rail car suitable for carrying commodities of a relatively heavy density. The foregoing and other objects and advantages are achieved by the converted hopper rail car and method of the present invention. In the present invention a center section of the multiple hopper rail car is completely severed and removed from a location between the two remaining end sections. The center section includes the entire center hopper section and a bulkhead portion of an adjacent end hopper section. The length of the removed center section permits the re-use of the center sloped sheets from the rail car. The remaining portions of the end hopper sections, which were located adjacent the removed center section, are then reassembled and welded together. As noted above, the removed center section includes the center hopper and the bulkhead portion of an adjacent hopper section such that certain extension members are added to the existing bulkhead prior to welding of the remaining sections or end hopper portions together. The present invention also replaces the outlet gates and changes the slope of certain bottom sheets to properly position the outlet gate. The present invention positions the cut line of the side sheets such that the side stakes are adjacent the welded splice connection and the splice connection is reinforced. 
     These and other advantages of the present invention will be clarified in the detailed description of the preferred embodiment taken together with the attached figures wherein like reference numerals represent like elements throughout. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a side view of a three-hopper rail car with the center portion to be removed indicated by cross-hatching; 
     FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the top left hand severing line illustrated in the three-hopper rail car of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the bottom left-hand severing line illustrated in the three-hopper rail car of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the top right-hand severing line illustrated in the three-hopper rail car of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the bottom right hand severing line illustrated in the three-hopper rail car of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 6 is a sectional side view schematically illustrating the left section or end hopper after removal of the severed center portion shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 7 is a sectional side view schematically illustrating the right section or end hopper after removal of the severed center portion shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 8 is a plan view of the side plate splice in the converted rail car according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 9 is a side view of a top portion of the side plate splice in the converted rail car according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 10 is a side view of a bottom portion of the side plate splice in the converted rail car according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 11 is a sectional side view of the discharge chute structure between the hoppers in the converted rail car according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 12 is a sectional side view of the discharge chute structure at the end of a hopper in the converted rail car according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 13 is a sectional end view of the discharge chute structure of a hopper in the converted rail car according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 14 is a side view of the assembled converted rail car according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 15 is a plan view of the rail car illustrated in FIG. 14; 
     FIG. 16 is an end view of the rail car illustrated in FIG. 14; and 
     FIG. 17 is a sectional end view of the rail car illustrated in FIG.  14 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     FIG. 1 illustrates a 4,750 cubic foot capacity covered hopper rail car indicated generally at  10  which is to be converted in accordance with the method of the present invention into the 3,190 cubic foot capacity converted rail car indicated generally at  12  in FIG.  14 . Basically, the conversion involves severing rail car  10  into three sections  14 ,  16  and  18 , removing center section  16 , which is shown in cross hatching in FIG. 1, and then reassembling and welding end sections  14  and  18  together. As discussed in my &#39;237 patent, to insure maximum strength for the converted rail car  12 , the rail car  10  should be severed very carefully when removing the center section  16 . For example, as seen in FIGS. 1-5, the vertical cuts at each end of section  16  should not all be in a common vertical line. Rather, the vertical cut lines  20  and  20 ′ in the side sheet  22  and  22 ′ and in the top chord  23  and  23 ′, respectively, should be offset from the vertical cut lines  26  and  26 ′ in the side sill  24  and  24 ′ to provide a tab and notch arrangement, as shown. Horizontal cuts  28  and  28 ′ connect the respective vertical cuts. The center sill  30  and  30 ′ should also have offset cut lines  32  and  32 ′ as shown in FIG.  1 . As shown in the Figures, the prime elements represent elements in the right-hand severed sections  18  which are similar to like numbered elements in section  14 . 
     The center section  16  to be removed differs from the section removed in my &#39;237 patent in several respects. First my &#39;237 patent essentially simply removed the center hopper. In the present invention, the center section  16  includes the center hopper and a portion of the left-hand hopper of FIG.  1 . The center section  16  is selected to properly position the outlets of the converted rail car  12  and to allow the re-use of the center sloped sheets of the rail car  10  in the converted rail car  12 . Additionally, my &#39;237 patent required the removal of several side stakes, one of which was reattached over the connection seam. In the present invention, the vertical cuts  20  and  20 ′ are positioned adjacent side stakes  34  and  34 ′, such that two side stakes  34  and  34 ′ will be positioned adjacent the connecting seam as shown in FIGS. 8-10. The weld between the side stake  34  and the side sill  24  below the horizontal cut  28 ′ as shown in FIG. 5 is also cut prior to removal of the center section  16 . After severing the center section  16 , the center section  16  can be removed by a crane as described in my &#39;237 patent. The remaining sections  14  and  18  can be supported prior to reattachment, as generally described in my &#39;237 patent. 
     FIG. 6 generally illustrates the structure of the left-hand section  14  before attachment of the sections  14  and  18 . FIG. 7 generally illustrates the structure of the right-hand section  18  before attachment of the sections  14  and  18 . As shown in FIG. 7, the bulkhead  36 , which was originally between the end hopper in section  18  and the center hopper in section  16 , needs to be extended prior to attachment of the sections  14  and  18 . A bulkhead extension  38  is welded in place to lengthen the bulkhead  36 . The bulkhead extension  38  extends to a tie gusset  40  that extends between the center sloped sheets  42  of the adjacent discharge chutes in the converted rail car  12 . The tie gusset  40  extends from side sill  24  to side sill  24  and between two center sloped sheets  42  forming an important structural component of the converted railcar  10 . Vertical tie gussets are added from the tie gusset  40  to the center sill  30  to reinforce the center sloped sheets  42 . 
     FIGS. 8-10 illustrate the splice conditions of the side sheet  22  and  22 ′, top chord  23  and  23 ′, and side sill  24  and  24 ′ in the converted rail car  12 . The severed side sheet  22  and  22 ′ and top chord  23  and  23 ′ are welded along the adjacent cuts  20  and  20 ′, and  28  and  28 ′. A splice plate.  44  is welded across the connection in the top chord  23  and  23 ′ inside the converted rail car  12  as shown in FIG. 9. A weld back plate  46  extends from the splice plate  44  to the horizontal cuts  28  and  28 ′. The bottom of the side stake  34 ′ of the section  18  can be welded to the tab portion of the section  14  formed by the offset vertical cut  26 . A tie plate  48  can be welded to the adjacent side stakes  34  as shown in FIGS. 8-10. The side sill  24  and  24 ′ is welded together as is the center sill  30  and  30 ′. A splice plate  50  can be positioned across the welded side sill  24  and  24 ′ for reinforcing this connection. One or more splice plates  52  can also be used for reinforcing the attached center sill  30  and  30 ′ as shown in FIG.  11 . 
     FIGS. 11-13 illustrate the formation of the discharge chutes in the converted rail car  12 . The converted rail car  12  is provided with standard 13″×42″ opening, gravity discharge gates  53  and  53 ′ shown in FIG.  14 . The new discharge gates  53  are deeper than the grain discharge gate of the rail car  10 . The original grain discharge gates are removed in the conversion process. FIGS. 11-13 illustrate the modifications provided to position gate  53  in a standard location. The center sloped sheets  42  and  42 ′ are angled at a 45 degree angle. The center sloped sheet  42 ′ of section  18  extends from the bulkhead  36  to an outlet gate support angle  54 ′. It is the length of the section  16  that allows the re-use of the existing center sloped sheets from the rail car  10 . The center sloped sheets  42  and  42 ′ only require trimming in length due to the new hopper discharge gates  53  and  53 ′. This is at a position higher than the original hopper outlet of the rail car  10  that is shown at position  56  in FIG. 11 due to the deeper gate  53 . The center sloped sheet  42  of section  14  extends from the bulkhead extension  38  to an outlet gate support angle  54 . The center sloped sheet  42  of section  14  is secured to the bulkhead extension  38  through a sealing plate  58 . 
     FIG. 12 illustrates an end sloped sheet  60 ′ for the hopper in section  18 . The end slope sheet for the hopper in section  14  is the substantially same. The end slope sheet  60 ′ is set at an angle of 34½ degrees and extends from an outlet gate support angle  54 ′ to a reinforcing plate  62 ′ at the level of the side sill  24 ′. The position of the end slope sheet  60 ′ is also positioned to raise the hopper opening above the original position  56 . This again is due to the relatively deeper gate  53  of the converted rail car  10 . A support structure  64  can be included to reinforce the end sloped sheet  60 ′. Additionally, vertical tie gussets will extend from the center sill  30  to the end sloped sheet  60 ′. Preferably, the existing vertical gussets can be used with an added extension. The end sloped sheet  60 ′ is a new sheet completely replacing the prior existing sheet in the rail car  10 . The prior sheet has been cut off from the bottom of the side sill  24  and  24 ′ to the original outlet gate. 
     FIG. 13 illustrates a side sloped sheet  66  for the hopper in sections  14  and  18 . The converted rail car  12  uses the side slope sheets of the rail car  10 . Each side sloped sheet  66  is set at an angle of 53 degrees, which is steeper than the positioning of the side sloped sheet in the rail car  10 . The side sloped sheet  66  is cut from the center sloped sheet  42  or  42 ′ along line  68  so that the side sloped sheet can be moved to the proper position as shown in FIG.  13 . This repositioning of the side sloped sheet  66  results in a triangular area, which is to be covered by a filler plate  70 . On the other side of the side sloped sheet  66 , the new end sheet  60  is sized appropriately such that no filler plate is required. The side sloped sheet  66  is attached at its lower end from an outlet gate support angle  54 . FIG. 13 also illustrates the position of the outlet gates  53  in the converted rail car  12  relative to the position  56  of the original outlet opening of the rail car  10 . The outlet gates  53  are secured to the outlet gate support angles  54  or  54 ′. 
     A roof assembly  72  with three hatch openings  74  illustrated in FIGS. 14 and 15 complete the construction of the converted rail car  12 . The hatch openings are 30″ in diameter with one positioned over each hopper and one positioned over the bulkhead  36 . In filling the converted rail car  12  with cement powder it is expected that only the hatch opening  74  centered over the bulkhead  36  would be used. As shown in FIG. 17, the bulkhead  36  includes A notch  76  adapted to receive a filling nozzle (not shown) placed within the center hatch opening  74 . The cement powder is fluid and self-leveling and easily fills both hoppers. Generally, the two outer hatch openings  74  would be used to assist in the discharge of cement powder. The roof assembly  72  is a new structure replacing existing trough hatch opening in rail car  10 . Control equipment, such as braking structures, door actuating mechanisms and the like can be installed and/or reconnected in a conventional fashion. The converted rail car  12  does not significantly effect the positioning or operation of such rail car accessories. 
     The converted rail car  12  according to the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 14-17. The converted rail car  12  provides a simpler conversion process than my &#39;237 patent. Additionally, the design of the side stakes  34  adjacent the juncture of the side sheet  22  provide for built in support to the juncture minimizing the reinforcement necessary. The standard positioning of the outlet gates  53  allows the converted rail car  12  to be universally utilized without specialized adapters. The capacity is larger than in the converted rail car of my earlier design. The converted rail car  12  is designed to minimize the new components needed in the conversion process. My &#39;237 patent required striker extensions to meet the AAR prescribed limits of the Cooper Rating. The converted rail car  12  meets the AAR prescribed limits of the Cooper Rating without further modification. This significantly reduces the cost of conversion. 
     It will be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes may be made in the present invention with out departing from the scope thereof. The described preferred embodiment is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive of the present invention. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereto.

Technology Classification (CPC): 8