Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to railroad freight cars useful for carrying motor vehicles, and particularly to cars capable of carrying motor vehicles on either two or three levels. 
         [0002]    Railroad freight cars have long been used for transporting newly manufactured motor vehicles long distances from the point of manufacture or a port of arrival to cities where dealerships are located or to railroad terminals where the motor vehicles are reloaded onto trucks for transport over highways to the locations of dealerships. In order for such railroad freight cars to be most economical it is desirable to carry a maximum number of motor vehicles on each railroad car, but it is also desired to be able to carry several different types of motor vehicles on each car and to be able to reconfigure the railroad freight car to carry such different types of vehicles without undue difficulty. 
         [0003]    It is known to adjust load-carrying decks in motor vehicle-carrying railroad cars to facilitate carrying different types of motor vehicles, but cars capable of such adjustments in the past have not been completely satisfactory. 
         [0004]    Railroad cars are restricted in size to fit within clearance envelopes established by agreements reached among railroads, in order to avoid collisions between trains on adjacent tracks and to ensure that all cars fit within the clearances available along the rail lines at places such as bridges and tunnels. 
         [0005]    In order to avoid pilferage or vandalism of motor vehicles and to protect motor vehicles from airborne hazards, many railroad freight cars designed to carry motor vehicles are enclosed and include roofs and end doors. The overall height of such a car, including its roof, is limited by the applicable clearance envelope, in order for the car to be able to be used without special routing considerations. At the same time, however, there must be sufficient interior vertical clearance height for safe carriage of the desired types of motor vehicles, with the railroad freight car in either its bi-level or its tri-level configuration. Also, motor vehicle-carrying railroad cars must meet certain deck height requirements to allow for movement of motor vehicles from car to car in a “circus loading” fashion. 
         [0006]    What is needed, then, is an improved railroad freight car which is easily adjustable to serve to carry a maximum number of motor vehicles of different sizes and to provide ample protection of such motor vehicles against pilferage and against damage from the elements, and which is convertible between a tri-level configuration and a bi-level configuration. Such a car should also conform to the clearance envelope applicable to operation on all ordinary rail lines. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The present invention overcomes some of the aforementioned shortcomings of prior art railroad cars by providing an improved railroad freight car for carrying motor vehicles on multiple levels, in a railroad car body including a pair of vehicle-carrying decks that can be located separately at different respective heights to provide a tri-level configuration or located closely above one another to provide a bi-level configuration in a car that fits within a standard clearance envelope, with prescribed vertical clearance heights above the vehicle-carrying decks. 
         [0008]    A railroad car which is one embodiment of the invention includes protective side walls of sheet metal construction each including side posts extending upwardly to a top chord of the car body. 
         [0009]    In one embodiment of the present invention a pair of movable motor vehicle-carrying decks are spaced upwardly above the lowest vehicle-carrying deck, where they are supported by the side posts and adjustable in height, between separate spaced-apart positions in a tri-level configuration and closely adjacent positions in a bi-level configuration of the car. 
         [0010]    In one embodiment of the present invention the moveable upper and intermediate vehicle-carrying decks are cambered, with the upper vehicle-carrying deck having a greater camber, with a lesser radius of curvature, than the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck. When the two decks are nested closely adjacent to each other in a bi-level configuration of the car, such cambers of the movable decks cooperatively provide a minimal combined vertical dimension of the two decks at the locations where vertical clearance is critical, so as to maximize between-decks vertical clearance heights for motor vehicles when the car is in a bi-level configuration. 
         [0011]    In a railroad car which is one embodiment of the present invention a raised structure or ramp is provided along each side of the draft gear housing, on each lateral side of the car, near the opposite ends of the car, with the raised structure having a vehicle-supporting top surface located at a prescribed height above the top of the rail height, so as to be aligned properly with a bridge extending between the car and an adjacent car or a loading dock. 
         [0012]    In one embodiment of the railcar disclosed herein an end portion of a movable intermediate vehicle-carrying deck is hinged, allowing its outer end to be raised to provide clearance in a tri-level configuration of the railcar. The hinges can be disconnected and the end portion can be moved longitudinally atop a mid-length portion of the intermediate deck, to provide ample vertical clearance height between the bottom deck and the upper vehicle-carrying deck at an end of the railcar in its bi-level configuration. 
         [0013]    The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0014]      FIG. 1  is a foreshortened side elevational view of a motor vehicle-carrying railroad car embodying an aspect of the present invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  is a partially cutaway side elevational view of a portion of the railroad car shown in  FIG. 1 , at an enlarged scale. 
           [0016]      FIG. 3  is a fragmentary view of a portion of the railroad car shown in  FIG. 2 , taken in the direction indicated by the line  3 - 3  in  FIG. 2 . 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  is a sectional view taken along line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 3 . 
           [0018]      FIG. 5  is an exploded view similar to that of  FIG. 4 , showing a removable ramp spaced apart from the position in which it is shown in  FIG. 4 . 
           [0019]      FIG. 6  is an end elevational view of the body of the railroad car shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , at an enlarged scale, but foreshortened in height, showing the car in a tri-level configuration. 
           [0020]      FIG. 7  is a partially cutaway view similar to  FIG. 6 , but showing the car in a bi-level configuration in which a pair of vehicle-carrying decks have been placed closely adjacent to each other. 
           [0021]      FIG. 8  is a fragmentary view showing a detail of the car body shown in  FIG. 7  at an enlarged scale. 
           [0022]      FIG. 9  is a fragmentary view showing a detail of the car body shown in  FIG. 6  with a moveable end portion of an intermediate vehicle-carrying deck shown in a partially raised position. 
           [0023]      FIG. 10  is a detail view taken along line  10 - 10  in  FIG. 2 , showing the manner in which a lateral side of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck is attached to one of the side posts in a mid-length part of the railcar. 
           [0024]      FIG. 11  is a partially cutaway side elevational view of a portion of a railroad car that is a different embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0025]      FIG. 12  is an end elevational view, partially foreshortened in height, of the railroad car shown in  FIG. 11 , showing the configuration at two different points along the length of the car, with the car in a tri-level configuration. 
           [0026]      FIG. 13  is a partially cutaway view similar to  FIG. 12 , but showing the car in a bi-level configuration in which a pair of vehicle-carrying decks have been placed closely adjacent to each other, showing the car at the same two points along the length of the car as in  FIG. 12 . 
           [0027]      FIG. 14  is a partially cutaway side elevational view of a portion of a railroad car that is a different embodiment of the present invention, 
           [0028]      FIG. 15  is an end elevational view, partially foreshortened in height, of the railroad car shown in  FIG. 14 , showing the configuration at two different points along the length of the car, with the car in a bi-level configuration. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
       [0029]    Referring now to  FIGS. 1-10  of the drawings which form a part of the disclosure herein, a motor vehicle-carrying, or auto rack railcar  16  which embodies the present invention includes an underbody  18  supporting an auto rack portion  20 , or superstructure, that includes side walls  22  extending upward above the underbody and a roof  24  extending above and between the side walls  22 . 
         [0030]    In the motor vehicle-carrying railcar  16  the underbody  18  may be essentially a conventional low level flat car including a pair of body bolsters  28  located at opposite ends  26  of the car  16  and supported on respective wheeled trucks  30 . A drop center sill  31  extends between the body bolsters  28  and a respective end portion  32  of the underbody  18  is longitudinally outboard of the body bolster  28  at each end. At a prescribed height  35  above the top of the rail (TOR)  34  on which the railcar  16  is located there is a coupler  36  at each end of the underbody  18 , and a draft gear housing  38  is included in the underbody  18 , located centrally of the width of the end portion  32 , to receive and house the draft gear associated with the coupler  36 . The draft gear housing  38  includes a top surface  40  at a height  42  which may be about 3 feet 5 1/8  inches above the top of rail  34 . The draft gear housing  38  extends over a length  44  of about  7  feet. 
         [0031]    The underbody  18  includes a bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  of which respective portions  48  extend alongside each lateral side  49  of the draft gear housing  38  from an end sill  50  toward the respective body bolster  28  in the respective end portion  32 . A conventional bridge mounting connection  52  is provided in the end portion of the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  in each lateral side portion, alongside the draft gear housing  38 , to receive a bridge (not shown) that may extend between the end sill  50  of the car  16  and an end sill of an adjacent auto rack car or a loading dock. 
         [0032]    In the auto rack portion  20  and spaced upwardly above the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  is an intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  supported on side posts  60  included in the side walls  22  and extending upward above side sills  62  extending longitudinally from end to end of the underbody  18 . The side posts  60  also support a top chord member  63  and the roof  24  that extends angularly upward and inward and across the top of the auto rack, interconnecting the side walls  22  of the auto rack and providing protection against the elements. 
         [0033]    An upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  is also supported by the side posts  60  and is also moveable between several different heights. As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 6  the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  and the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  are mounted in a tri-level configuration of the auto carrying railcar  16 , in which motor vehicles may be supported on each of the bottom deck  46 , intermediate deck  58 , and upper deck  64 , with sufficient vertical clearance for the height of a passenger vehicle of a selected class on each of the vehicle-carrying decks, as will be explained in greater detail presently. 
         [0034]    A standard height of 3 feet 7 ½ inches above TOR has been established for the end of a railcar in a tri-level configuration for carrying automobiles, to assure that such railcars can be coupled to one another to allow for circus loading of automobiles moving across a bridge extending between adjacent railcar ends. The height of the end portion  32  of a railcar is prescribed to be within 3 inches of the standard height. In the railcar  16 , the height  65  of the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  in the end portion of the car, adjacent to the end sill  50 , is 3 feet 1 ⅞ inch. Accordingly a vehicle wheel-supporting ramp  70  is provided in the end portion  32  of the underbody  18 , extending from the end sill  50  longitudinally into the car a distance  71  of, for example, about 4 feet. An upper wheel-supporting surface  72  of the ramp  70  has a height of 2 ⅝ inches above the top surface of the portions  48  of the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  at the end of the car body, so that the ramp  70  has a ramp top height  73  of 3 feet 4 ½ inches above TQR  34 , and thus is located within the 3 inch range permitted as a variation from the standard 3 feet 7 ½ inch height. A pair of such ramps  70  are located in the end portion  32  of the car  16 , with one of the ramps  70  on the deck portion  48  at each lateral side of the draft gear housing  38 . This provides a minimum vertical clearance height  74  of 54 inches above the upper wheel-supporting surface  72  of the ramp  70  and beneath the lowest surface of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58 , as may be seen in  FIG. 6 . Unless otherwise described, the vertical clearance height above a vehicle-carrying deck, or the height of a deck, as mentioned herein is measured at a lateral distance of 30 inches from a vertical longitudinal center plane  76  of the railcar  16 , as required by the American Association of Railroads (AAR) standards related to Plate J clearances. 
         [0035]    As shown in  FIGS. 3 ,  4 , and  5 , the ramp  70  may be fastened to the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  by conventional removable means, such as by threaded fasteners  77 , quick release fasteners (not shown), etc., so that the ramps  70  may be removed without undue difficulty in converting the automobile carrying railcar  16  from the tri-level configuration shown in  FIGS. 2 and 6  to a bi-level configuration, as shown in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . The ramps  70  may be attached to part of the railcar out of the way of motor vehicles to be carried, so as to be readily available for reconfiguration to the tri-level configuration when desired. As shown in  FIG. 2 , at a location within the automobile carrying railcar  16  in the tri-level configuration, in a middle portion of the length of the car  16 , there is a vertical clearance height  79  of 63 1/16 inches above the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  to the lowest surface of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58 , which is thus greater than the standard required clearance of 62 ⅜ inches. 
         [0036]    When the railcar  16  is in the tri-level configuration as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 6 , a hinged end portion  82  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  may be raised to an inclined position as shown in side elevational view in  FIG. 2 , to provide an ample vertical clearance height above the ramps  70  in the end portions  32  of the car during loading of motor vehicles onto the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46 . This provides a vertical clearance height  75  of 63 1/16 inches above the upper wheel supporting surface  72  of the ramp  70 . Various arrangements are known for supporting the movable end portions  82  of such a vehicle-carrying deck  58  in the raised position, including a spring and chain arrangement  83 . Once the desired motor vehicles have been placed onto the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  the end portions  82  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  may be lowered to a horizontal orientation, aligned with the longitudinally central part of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58 , as shown in solid line in  FIG. 6 . Lateral margins of the movable end portion  82  may include longitudinal structural members  85 , and may be supported on brackets  84  mounted on respective ones of the side posts  60  at a suitable height, as shown in  FIG. 9 . Upper surfaces of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  then have a height  86  of 8 feet, 11/16 inch above the height of the TOR  34 , which is equal to the standard height prescribed for such a tri-level automobile carrying railcar. Conventional bridge members (not shown) can then be connected to the ends of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  to move motor vehicles onto or off from the railcar  16  onto an adjacent car or loading dock. 
         [0037]    A vertical clearance height  88  of 61 ⅞ inches is provided between the top vehicle wheel supporting surfaces  89  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  and the lowest bottom surfaces of the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  with the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  in the required position along the side posts  60  in the tri-level configuration. This places the top wheel-supporting surface  91  of the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  at a height of 13 feet, 4 ¾ inches above TOR  34 , within the allowable range relative to the standard height of 13 feet, 4 ⅜ inches for the upper deck in a tri-level configuration. 
         [0038]    This also leaves a vertical clearance height  90  of 65 ⅝ inch above the top vehicle wheel supporting surfaces  91  of the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  and beneath the bottom surfaces of the roof  24 , a clearance which is greater than the minimum required standard clearance of 64 ⅞ inches beneath the bottom surfaces of a roof for an auto rack car in a tri-level configuration. 
         [0039]    While auto rack cars have previously been available with the required between-decks vertical clearances for a tri-level configuration, such cars not exceeding the maximum overall height  92  of 19 feet 0 inches above TOR  34  as required by AAR Plate J have not been convertible to a bi-level configuration except by removing either the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  or the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  from the railcar to attain the bi-level configuration and still provide the required vertical clearances. 
         [0040]    In the present motor vehicle-carrying railcar  16 , however, the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  is raised, and the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  is lowered, to bring those two moveable decks together into respective positions along the side posts  60  in which the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  is closely adjacent and above the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58 , as shown in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . 
         [0041]    With the automobile carrying railcar  16  in that bi-level configuration as shown in  FIGS. 7 and 8 , ramps  94 , similar to but lower in height than the ramps  70 , may be provided in positions similar to the positions of the ramps  70  as shown. In the railcar  16  as shown the ramps  70  are located partially atop the ramps  94 , as shown in  FIGS. 2-6 . The ramps  94 , as shown best in  FIGS. 3 ,  4 , and  5 , may be ⅞ inch in height above the portions  48  of the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  at the end sill  50 , so that the top vehicle-carrying surfaces  99  of the ramps  94  are at a height  96  of 3 feet 2 ¾ inches above TOR at the end sill  50 , with the car  16  in the bi-level configuration. This height is thus within ¼ inch of an older, but still applicable standard height above TOR for the bottom deck of a bi-level automobile-carrying railcar, and less than 3 inches lower than the more recently established standard height of the bottom deck at the ends of a bi-level automobile-carrying railcar. This also provides a vertical clearance height  98  of 87 inches (7 feet 3 inches) between the top vehicle-carrying surfaces  99  of the ramps  94  and the lowest bottom surface of the hinged portion  82  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58 . 
         [0042]    The vertical clearance height  98  of 87 inches, in the end portions  32  of the car  16 , above the ramps  94  and beneath the hinged portion  82  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  thus satisfies the AAR Plate J standard requirement for a minimum of  87  inches clearance between the lower deck and the upper deck of a bi-level auto rack configuration. In a longitudinally central portion of the car, between the body bolsters  28 , in the bi-level configuration there is a significantly greater vertical clearance height  98 ′ of 7 feet 8 ⅝ inches between the top surface of the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  and the lowest bottom surface of the horizontal portion of the fixed intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58 , as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
         [0043]    The AAR standard minimum clearance above the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  in a bi-level configuration is 93 ¼ inches, and in the automobile carrying railcar  16  the vertical clearance height  100  in the bi-level configuration is 93 ⅜ inches beneath the lower, inner, surface of the roof  24 , thus satisfying the minimum clearance requirement. 
         [0044]    The clearances described in the preceding paragraphs are enabled by the structural dimensions and the cooperative configuration of the intermediate and upper vehicle-carrying decks  58  and  64 , which permits them both to be kept in the interior of the car in converting the car  16  from the tri-level configuration to the bi-level configuration. Each of the movable vehicle-carrying decks  58  and  64  is constructed primarily of corrugated sheet metal with corrugations extending transversely and with each deck including an upwardly arched camber. The corrugated portions of the movable vehicle-carrying decks  58  and  64  may have respective top to bottom thicknesses  101  of about 1.75 inches. Each of the decks  58  and  64  includes a pair of parallel longitudinally-extending reinforcing members  102  which may be of rectangular tubular configuration and which may be spaced apart laterally from one another by a distance of about 4 feet, centered along the longitudinal vertical center plane  76  of the car  16 . 
         [0045]    A curb member  104 , spaced laterally outward from each of the reinforcing members  102 , is located on the upper face of each of the intermediate and upper vehicle-carrying decks  58  and  64  when the car is in the tri-level configuration, at a distance of about  18  inches from the lateral sides of the decks. The curbs  104  serve to prevent a motor vehicle from wandering too close to one of the side walls  22  or posts  60 , and also add desired rigidity and stability to the deck structures. The curb members  104  may be attached to the end portions  82  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  by bolts, for example, and can be removed and stored on the underside of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  when the car  16  is in the bi-level configuration. 
         [0046]    As one way to bring the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  close enough to the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  to provide the necessary vertical clearances between decks and above the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  in the bi-level configuration, the cambers of the two decks are slightly different, as shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 . That is, the radius of curvature  106  of the camber of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  is greater than the radius of curvature  108  of the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64 . For example, the radius  106  may be 275 inches, while the radius  108  may be 264 inches, in one embodiment. 
         [0047]    In placing the car  16  into the bi-level configuration, then, the curbs  104  are removed from the top of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  and the two decks are moved toward each other and attached to the side posts  60  in respective positions where the lateral margins of the two decks are at least nearly in contact with each other. A mounting and support bracket  110  on the bottom side of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  supports the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck and attaches it to the side posts  60  in the mid-length portion of the car  16 , while an upwardly extending mounting and support bracket  112  attaches the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  to the side posts  60 . Because of the different camber curvatures of the intermediate and upper vehicle-carrying decks  58  and  64 , there is room for the longitudinally extending reinforcing members  102  on the top of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58 , between the top of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  and the bottom of the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64 , as shown in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . This combination of the two cambered vehicle-carrying decks with different radii of curvature results in a combined height  114  of the paired intermediate and upper vehicle-carrying decks in the bi-level configuration that is less than would be the case if both cambered decks had the same radius of curvature. The smaller combined height  114  of the two decks results in additional vertical spacing above and below the paired decks at the locations relative to the width of the railcar  16  where vertical clearance heights are specified. 
         [0048]    At each end of the car a pair of tri-fold doors  116 ,  118  may be provided to protectively enclose automobiles within the car. Such doors can be folded and moved laterally apart from each other to positions at the corners of the car body, leaving ample room between the doors  116 ,  118  for vehicles to be loaded onto or removed from the car  16 . 
         [0049]    In a slightly different motor vehicle-carrying railcar  130  shown in  FIGS. 11 ,  12 , and  13 , a somewhat different underbody  131  may include a bottom vehicle-carrying deck  132  with the same profile as that in the automobile carrying railcar  16 . In the railcar  130  the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  132 , instead of being supported atop a dropped center sill, is supported by a pair of deep side sills  134 , which may be box beams of ample strength extending along the length of the car between opposite end sills  136 . 
         [0050]    In each of the opposite end portions  32 ′ of the car  130  there is a draft gear housing  138  similar to that in the previously described car  16 , and ramps  70  and  94  may be provided atop the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  132 . The top surfaces of the ramps  70  and  94  provide the required heights above the TOR  34  for attachment of a bridge to extend to an adjacent railcar or a loading dock, depending on whether the railcar  130  is in a tri-level or a bi-level configuration as described above with respect to the railcar  16 . 
         [0051]    The superstructure, including side walls  22 , side posts  60  and moveable intermediate and upper decks  58 ,  64  may be similar to those of the previously described car  16 , although the roof  24  and a structure supporting the roof  24  may be somewhat different, and the side posts  60  are connected with the side sills  134 . 
         [0052]    While many motor vehicle-carrying railcars are made in the form of an auto rack superstructure added to an underbody  18  in the form of a more or less standard low level flat car with a length of 90 feet over strikers, the car  130  shown herein may be built expressly to be a motor vehicle-carrying car as shown. The bottom vehicle-carrying deck  132  may be constructed of a corrugated sheet steel construction utilizing relatively high-strength steel with transversely extending corrugations making the deck self-supporting, with the deck having a thickness of about 1.75 inches. The profile of the bottom deck  132  may be the same as that of the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46 , so that its top surface has a height  133  of 3 feet, 1 ⅞ inch above the TOR  34  at the end sill  50 . Accordingly there may be ramps  94  for bringing the upper surface of the end of the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  132  into agreement with the prescribed height above TOR  34  for the car  130  in the bi-level configuration. There may also be ramps  70  to provide the specified height to mate with bridge structures between the end portions of the car and an adjacent car or loading dock with the car  130  in the tri-level configuration. 
         [0053]      FIGS. 14 and 15  show a motor vehicle-carrying railcar  150  which is similar in many respects to the railcar  16  shown in  FIGS. 1-10 . The same reference numerals used in  FIGS. 1-10  are used in  FIGS. 14 and 15  to indicate similar portions of the railcar  150 . As shown in  FIGS. 14 and 15 , the railcar  150  is in a bi-level configuration. 
         [0054]    As shown the railcar  150  includes a drop center sill  31  in its underbody  18 . It should be understood, however, that the underbody of the railcar  150  could also be of the same construction as in the railcar  130  shown in  FIGS. 11 ,  12 , and  13 , including a pair of deep side sills  134  instead of the drop center sill  31  shown in  FIGS. 14 and 15 . 
         [0055]    In the tri-level configuration the railcar  150  has its movable intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158  and its upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  in respective locations substantially similar to the locations of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  and upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  shown in  FIG. 2 . In  FIG. 14  broken lines  152  and  154  show, respectively, the locations where an intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158  and the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  would be when the railcar  150  is in a tri-level configuration similar to that shown in  FIGS. 2 and 11 . Broken line  156  represents an imaginary surface parallel with the upper surface of the bottom deck  46  and the upper or wheel-supporting surface  72  of the ramp  70 , at a distance  157  above the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46 . The distance  157  is 89 ¼ inches, and thus is greater than the minimum vertical clearance distance required by the American Associate of Railroads, above the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  for a motor vehicle-carrying railcar in a bi-level configuration. 
         [0056]    An end portion  162  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158  is interconnected with a mid-length portion  164  by a hinge (not shown), in a manner similar to that of the interconnection between the end portion  82  and the mid length portion of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  58  as shown in  FIG. 2 , so that the end portion  162  may be raised, pivoting about the hinge, to a position similar to that of the end portion  82  as shown in  FIG. 2 , during loading of motor vehicles into the railcar  150  when it is in its tri-level configuration. 
         [0057]    When it is desired to convert the railcar  150  from its tri-level configuration to the bi-level configuration shown in  FIGS. 14 and 15 , the hinge connecting the end portion  162  with the mid-length portion  164  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158  is disconnected, and, while the mid-length portion  164  remains temporarily in its position indicated by the broken line  152  in  FIG. 14  for the tri-level configuration of the railcar  150 , the end portion  162  is raised and moved longitudinally toward the middle of the length of the car, along the top of the mid-length portion  164  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158 . For example, the end portion  162  may be moved a distance of about  10  feet longitudinally along the mid-length portion  164 . Movement of the end portion  162  above and along the mid-length portion  164  may be accomplished using various methods and various means of easing the movement, none of which are of particular relevance to the present disclosure, but the end portion  162  must be moved far enough inward, toward the center of the length of the railcar  150 , to leave ample vertical clearance distance between the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  and the bottom of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158  once the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck is raised to the position shown in  FIGS. 14 and 15 . The upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  is lowered, and the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158  is raised, to the respective positions shown in  FIGS. 14 and 15 , with part of the end portion  162  remaining between the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  and the mid-length portion  164 . 
         [0058]    As may be seen in the right hand portion of  FIG. 15 , the camber of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158 , including its end portion  162 , may be the same as the camber of the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64 , and because the top surface of the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  is lower at a point  166  along the length of the railcar  150  between the body bolsters  28 , the vertical clearance  168 , between the bottom vehicle-carrying deck  46  and the underside of the mid-length portion  164  of the intermediate vehicle-carrying deck  158 , is greater than the minimum specified for a motor vehicle-carrying railcar in a bi-level configuration. At the same time, the clearance  170  above the upper vehicle-carrying deck  64  remains ample and equivalent to the clearance  100  in the railcar  16 . 
         [0059]    The terms and expressions which have been employed in the foregoing specification are used therein as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, it being recognized that the scope of the invention is defined and limited only by the claims which follow.

Technology Category: 7