US1578840A - Drop-bottom stock car - Google Patents

Description

March 30 1926. I 1,578,840

, A. c MATHER DROP BOTTOM STOCK CAR Filed Sept. 19, 1923 2 shets-sl'leeh 1 March so, 1926.

A. c. MATHER DROP BOTTOM STOCK CAR Filed Sept. 19, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 JRVGIZZOI v Patented Mar. 30, 1926.

UNITED. STATES PATENT -ov1= c1z..

nLoNz'o-o. MATHER, or emailed ILLiNoIs;

. DROP-BOTTOM STOCK CAR. f

Application filed September 19, 1923. Seria1'No. 663,6 32.

7 '0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that'I, ALo'Nzo MA'rHER, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Chicago, eounty of Cook, andv State of to doors in stock which open downward; third, to, be able to open and "close the .doors from one end of the car; fourth, to so construct the operating levers for the doors that they serve to stiffen the operating shaft; fifth,

to make strong, durable and quick operating doors and other features to become apparent fromthe description to follow.

Since the efliciency of railroad cars is expedited by having the cars. loaded in their travels across the country in, botlrdir ed tions, Iprefer to make my improved drop bottom doors inconnection with stock cars,

. but they m'ay-be used on any other kind of car, To describe my invention so-that othersversed in the art to which it per- 'tains can make and usethexsame,-I have illustrated it on the accompanying two partof this.

sheets of drawing forming a specification and in which Figurel, is a bottom plan view of .a car provided with my invention;'Fig. 2, is

across sectional'view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3, is a sectional view taken on line 33 of Fig. 2, partly broken away;

Fig. 4c, is a central longitudinal sectional view through one of the operatlng shafts partly broken away; Fig. 5, is a cross sectional View taken on line, 5-5jof Fig. 4c, and Fig. 6, is a cross sectional view taken on line 66 of Fig. 4-

Similar reference characters refer to si1nilar parts throughout the several views.

The center sills of the car are shown at 7 the side sills at '8, the bolster at 9, the end of the car at 10 and the intermediate braces at 11, which parts are of the usual construction in cars. The floor 12, see Fig.

2, above the center sills 7 and also above the bolster 9 and braces 11 necessarily has to be fixed but the balance of the fiooroof the car comprising sixteen rectangular shaped sections is made 1n the form of when closed form "the floor or" hinged doors 13 connected to the center sills by the hinges 14: and arrangedv to swing down to an angle of about 40 degrees.

-The mechanism, designed for "rigidly holding the sixteendoors' in a closed .position level with the floor ofthe car and sufficiently strong to support dead weight or live weight as cattle, comprises a shaft 15 preferably squareineross section extending the entire length of the carunder each row of. eight doors 13 on each side of the car, said shaft having its bearings in suitable boxes 16 supported beneath the car on hangers secured to the bolsters 9, the end sills 10 and the braces 11. Mounted on the shaft to turnwith the same underneath each door 13 are twolifting arms 17 provided with anti-friction grooved rollers 18 on their free ends to engage suitable tracks 19 secured tothe doors 1 3. The arms 17 are so positioned and are of such length with respect to the position of shaft 15 that the doors 13' will be in a horizontal position when the arms 17 are in their upper or vertical position, and the doors 18 will be'in f their lowermostposition as shown by. dotted lines in 2', when the arms 171L113 in their lowered posit on. Obv ously the arms' 17 on; one s de of the car are operated in unison by their cooperating'shaft 15.

f Themechanism provided for turning or operating theshaft 15 comprises a large gear wheel'2Q mounted on one end of the shaft 15 to turn therewith which "meshes with a pinion 21 rigidly mounted o njag the end sill 10 and is provided on its exposed end with the operating crank 23,

and the ratchet wheel 24: which is engaged by the pawl 25 pivotally mounted on the end'of the car. The pawl and ratchet are so arrangedthat the shaft 15 will be locked against rotation when the doors are closed and'to drop the doors the pawl 25 must be lifted out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 24. To make a strong and rigid construction I prefer to have the rollers 18 on the free ends of the arms 17 pass the dead center above the shaft 15 when the doors 13 are closed and to prevent the same from moving'too far beyond the dead center I shaft wh'icl1"has its bearing 22 secured to provide the stops 26 on the tracks 19. The Y tracks 19 areextended out beyond the steps 26 to serve as lower braces for the door 13.

flhe square shaft 15 is provided with bear ng sleeves27within the boxes 16.-

Vhile the shaft may he made sufli cientllv heavy to prevent its twisting when lifting the doors to a closed position, 1 prefer to form integral interlocking tapered lugs 29 on the meeting ends of the sleeves on said shafts. as well as on the hubs of the gear wheels 20, and applying a screw nut 28 on each end of the shaft 15 to draw the parts mounted on the shaft tightly to- .gether and forming a rigid cast sleeve on the exterior of the shaft. In such ease of course the shaft mayiberound instead of square in cross-section It will be understood that the arms 17 are provided? with sleeves 30 at their pivotal ends; i

In operation to lower the doors the pawl 25 is lifted out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 24 and the crank 23 is turned States is 1-. In a device of the class described,-floor I doors hinged to the car frame, a compound shaft arranged below thefree ends of the doors comprising a plurality of sleeves locked together to turn in unison and a center rod, arms mounted on said. shaft to turn therewith and to' have their free/ends engage the lower sides of the doors and means for rotatingsaid shaft to raise and lower thedoors.

2;. In a device of the class described; floor'd'oors; a built-up shaft comprising, a sleeve forming the h-ubof a gear, a sleeve forming, the fulcrum of an arm: arranged to have its free end engage one of said doors and a' rod to hold the sleeves in alignment.

3. In a device of the class described, floor doors, a built-up shaft, arms to operateaoly connect the shaft and the doors, bearingboxes for the shaft and a gear to rotate said shaft, said shaft comprising a hub of the gear and sleeves forming the pivotal ends of said arms and a center rod to hold the partsinalignment; i I

at, In a device of the class describe'd, floor doors, a built-up shaft, arms to operateably connect the shaft and the doors, bearing boxes for the shaft and a gear to rotate said shaft, said shaft comprising sleeves forming the pivotal ends of said arms and a center rod provided with end nuts to clamp the shaft end-wise.

51 In device of the cl assdescribed, floor doors hinged at the center ofthe car, a compound shaft arranged below the free ends of the doors comprising. a plurality of sleeves having inter-locking lugs on their meeting ends and acenter rod provided with nuts at each end to clamp the sleeves together,arms mounted on said shaft to turn therewith and to have their free ends engage the lower side of the doors andmeans for re- 'tating said shaft to raise and lower the doors. s 1 I 6. In a device of the class described, floor doors; a built-up shaft arms to" operably connect theshaftand the doors; bearing gboxes for the shaft and, a gear to rotate said shaft; said shaft comprising: bearing sleeveswithin the hence, a hub of the gear,

and sleeves forming the pivotal ends of said arms and a center rod provided with end nuts to clamp the shaft endwise,,said gear hub andv said sleeves having interlock 'ing lugsr I In testimony whereof I-have signed my name of-this specification this 7th day of September, 1928,. at Chicago, Illinois ,ArioNzoo. MATHER.

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