Patent ID: 7213718

Claim:
A vertically aligning slackless drawbar for connecting adjacently disposed ends of a pair of railway freight cars together in a substantially semi-permanent manner, said vertically aligning slackless drawbar comprising: (a) a yoke having a first end and a second end for retainment between a front lug and a rear lug of a first center sill, said yoke having a substantially concave face, a rear portion and a first pair of vertically aligned concentric apertures; (b) a first member having a first end of a substantially convex surface for mating with said substantially concave face disposed within said yoke, said substantially convex face convexly shaped in each of a generally lateral direction and a generally vertical direction, said first end further having a vertically aligned “F” pin aperture, said first member further having a second end having a cavity formed by a first side surface portion, a second side surface portion, a top surface portion and bottom surface portion, said second end further having a second pair of vertically aligned concentric apertures disposed within said top surface portion and said bottom surface portion of said cavity; (c) a second member having a first end, said first end having a third tapered surface portion and a fourth tapered surface portion, said first end further having a vertically aligning pivot pin aperture of a predetermined diameter, said second member further having a second end of a substantially convex surface for mating with a substantially concave surface disposed within a second center sill, said substantially convex surface convexly shaped in each of a generally lateral direction and a generally vertical direction, said second end further having a substantially spherical surface portion; (d) a pivot pin for pivotally coupling said second member to said first member; (e) a standard type “F” pin for securing said first end of said first member to said yoke; (f) a pair of drawbar retainers fitted against a front lug of said second center sill, said pair of drawbar retainers having a substantially spherical surface for mating with said substantially spherical surface portion disposed within said second end of said second member; (g) a pair of gravity wedges for compensating for longitudinal slack; and (h) a pair of at least one leaf spring of a predetermined force and of a predetermined temper disposed between said rear lug and said gravity wedge, said pair of at least one leaf spring for maintaining said pair of gravity wedges in place and preventing said pair of gravity wedges from descending and locking in the draft condition.