Abstract: A variable spring group for a railcar wheel truck assembly, which spring group has independent variable rate control springs for biasing snubber assemblies of a bolster in the wheel truck assembly, with the spring group having a first linear spring rate at an empty-railcar condition and a second linear spring rate at a loaded railcar condition that is at least five times as great as the empty-car spring rate, and the control springs are variable rate springs with a first and empty-railcar rate and a second and loaded-railcar spring rate, which is about twice the empty car control spring rate.

Abstract: A railcar truck side frame has a pedestal jaw arrangement, which inclines the bearing adapter for the axle and bearing assembly with a relative slope in the side-frame longitudinal direction, to provide transfer of the forces causing angular displacement of the axle to stop lugs on the side-frame outer surface and to minimize axle angular displacement and, consequently, truck warping and hunting.

Abstract: A structural device is attached to each sideframe pedestal jaw of a railcar truck wherein the bearing adapter is joined to the sideframe and is prevented from rotating within the pedestal jaw opening. The bearing adapter inboard and outboard faces maintain a parallel relationship with the sideframe inboard and outboard faces during operations, including curving, thereby causing the truck axles to remain at a right angle with respect to the sideframes. Maintaining this right angular relationship substantially curtails truck wheel misalignment, which directly effects truck hunting and curving.

Abstract: A lightweight, cast steel railcar truck sideframe is the result of matching stress levels within each of the sideframe components with an amount of metallic mass necessary to maintain structural integrity during railcar loading. Areas on each component which were found to be low stress accumulation areas have removed mass from them, reducing sideframe weight. The removal of mass is accomplished by adding lightener holes to and/or reducing thickness of the particular component. Areas on each component found to be high stress areas have added mass in order to strengthen the sideframe. Areas with reduced mass far exceed those increased. The lightener holes are uniquely used in the casting mold such that only nine cores are needed when casting the entire sideframe. By using only a total of nine cores instead of twenty-eight, substantial manhour and production costs savings are realized.

Abstract: The present invention comprises an improved method and apparatus for treating water in heat exchange systems. The present invention automatically and inexpensively provides an effective chemical to process water systems at times and in proportion to the need for water treatment in such systems. When used in evaporative cooling systems, the present invention adds the treatment chemical to the system via the make-up water. The make-up water acquires a substantially constant concentration of treatment chemical as it is passed through a device containing a treatment chemical. The constant concentration of chemical is achieved by dividing the make-up flow into two streams within the device, saturating the smaller of the two streams with chemical, and re-mixing the two streams. The biocide agent used in the preferred embodiment of the invention is prilled elemental iodine.

Abstract: An accessory fluid cylinder and cam apparatus mounted under a fifth wheel, which is both manually operable or energizable by a tractor air system to enable a driver to automatically and remotely release the safety latch and unlock the fifth wheel jaw to release a trailer king pin when the tractor parking brake is engaged.

Abstract: A steering arm assembly for a railway truck has an undercut compound radius between the body portion and the longitudinal segment on of each side arm in order to decrease the stress intensity at this location, which resultantly provides increased flexural strength to the assembly while maintaining the clearance between the steering arm and truck components.

Abstract: Slack-free or slackless coupling systems have application in various types of coupling arrangements such as drawbars, articulated connectors, and E and F type couplers. The gravity wedge that takes up any slack developed when the system components wear, maintains a constant longitudinal force on the follower block and coupler member butt-end interface. However, under high buff loading, that mated interface develops high friction forces during curving and angling. It has been found that the lateral component of these friction forces can become great enough to cause wheel lift at the wheel/rail interface. The present invention reduces that component of friction by greatly reducing the coefficient of friction at the coupler/follower block interface by supplying a lubricant between these surfaces.

Abstract: A railway vehicle truck bolster friction shoe pocket includes a sloped rear wall and longitudinally spaced sidewalls depending from the rear wall to form a friction shoe pocket having open top and bottom ends for receiving a variable rate type of friction shoe. During rotation and translation of the bolster with respect to the truck sideframe, the outboard friction shoe pocket sidewall is repeatedly impacted by the outer and upper corner of the friction shoe. The impacting causes protuberances to form in the outboard sidewall, but only on the upper portion of the wall. The same sidewall is provided with a relieved section across the entire sidewall upper portion in order to eliminate the impact contact area between the upper portion of the friction shoe and the upper portion of the outboard sidewall. Eliminating the contact area eliminates the formation of protuberances and extends the life of the bolster.

Abstract: A pair of opposed positioning lugs are attached to respective front and rear pedestal jaw walls of a railcar truck sideflame. The lugs are interposed between said respective jaw wall and the truck axle bearing assembly, laterally extending across the width of the sideframe pedestal jaw. The lugs function to independently maintain each axle in a right-angular relationship with respect to the truck sideframe when the sideframe travels upon linear track. Without the positioning lugs, each of the axles can potentially contact either of the pedestal jaw walls even when the truck travels upon linear track. This is due to the casting variances in the longitudinal length of each sideframe comprising the truck. When this type of truck negotiates a curve, an axle can be in contact with a pedestal jaw wall during linear truck travel to prevent the truck from steering as it was designed.

Abstract: A railcar suspension assembly at each end of a railcar eliminates the use of a car body bolster and allows payload forces to be carried at railcar side sills into a cross-extending box-like section. The section has bearing wear plates attached to it directly over the truck sideframes so that the forces pass directly downward, into the bearing assembly which is attached to the bolster ends. The forces then are transferred into a conventional sideframe. The loading path allows the bolster to be made with a lightweight midsection and conventional ends having friction shoe pockets.

Abstract: A heat exchange apparatus is provided with an indirect evaporative heat exchange section and a direct evaporative heat exchange section. A uniform temperature evaporative liquid is downwardly sprayed into the indirect section to indirectly exchange sensible heat with a hot fluid stream flowing within a series of enclosed circuits which comprise the indirect evaporative heat exchange section. After the evaporative fluid descends through the entire indirect heat exchange section and absorbs heat, it is distributed across fill media within the direct evaporative heat exchange section for cooling. Separate streams of ambient cooling air are simultaneously drawn into each of the heat exchange sections to evaporatively cool the evaporative liquid flowing within each section. The water cooled in the direct heat exchange section is then collected in a sump where it is allowed to mix and resultantly become uniform in temperature before being redistributed.

Abstract: A side feeding fluid distribution system is provided which is used for uniformly distributing a heat exchange fluid to an underlying structure. The distribution system comprises a distribution pan, a pre-distribution box, and a removable basket strainer housed within the pre-distribution box. The fluid transporting pre-distribution box is centrally located in resting relationship on top of the distribution pan. The pre-distribution box has a pair of uniquely configured converging sidewalls which allow portions of the flowstream to be incrementally stripped from the main flowstream as it flows towards the backwall of the pre-distribution box. The velocity energy of the stripped portion of flow is thereby conserved, and then advantageously used to create uniform water distribution throughout the distribution pan, and hence, to the nozzles attached in the bottom of the pan. The pre-distribution box sidewalls also form an internal chamber for receiving a removable in-line basket filter or strainer.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for feeding alloy additive and burden materials to the burden in a vertical shaft furnace working volume generally by gravity-feeding the alloy additive to the furnace tuyere for entrainment in the blast media and transfer to the burden, which improves the recovery rate of the charged additive components in the molten metal and, allows utilization of undersized materials without secondary handling and treatment of the feed materials or utilization of pneumatic feed apparatus.

Abstract: The sideframe of a railway car truck are constructed such that basic overall sideframe appearance is maintained, but the actual construction results in a more efficient use of the materials as a way of reducing the sideframe weight. This means that material is used according to how the stresses are encountered by the sideframe, dictating that the sideframe midsection is structurally heavier than the sideframe ends. Maximization of this construction is provided by shaping the entire sideframe into a solid, unitary cross-sectional I-beam shape. A solid top flange of the I-beam corresponds to the typical top compression member while the solid bottom flange corresponds to the typical bottom compression member. The solid vertical web, which interconnects the top and bottom flanges is a typical, thereby allowing the web to absorb forces which would normally have to be absorbed by either top or bottom member.

Abstract: The present invention comprises an improved method and apparatus for treating water in heat exchange systems. The present invention automatically and inexpensively provides an effective chemical to process water systems at times and in proportion to the need for water treatment in such systems. When used in evaporative cooling systems, the present invention adds the treatment chemical to the system via the make-up water. The make-up water acquires a substantially constant concentration of treatment chemical as it is passed through a device containing a treatment chemical. The constant concentration of chemical is achieved by dividing the make-up flow into two streams within the device, saturating the smaller of the two streams with chemical, and re-mixing the two streams. The biocide agent used in the preferred embodiment of the invention is prilled elemental iodine.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for cooling, air which apparatus includes an indirect evaporative cooler, an indirect contact chiller, a reheat coil component, an ice-thermal-storage component and an ice-manufacturing refrigeration chiller to provide alternative air-flow paths and alternative component combinations. Alternative fluid-flow paths are provided through electable combinations of the several components to effect the desired lowering of air temperature, relative humidity and air density in the cooled air.

Abstract: The present invention provides method and apparatus for incorporating thermal storage and other low-temperature reservoirs with new or retrofittable refrigerant circuit devices to increase their thermal operating capacity and efficiency by subcooling refrigerant condensate with subcoolers, as illustrated in a plurality of structural arrangements, which allows simultaneous cooling of a refrigerated volume and recharging of the thermal storage system, and further, it may utilize proportional subcooling to proportionally control evaporator capacity.

Abstract: A supplemental cooling system couplable to at least one refrigerant-cooled apparatus with a refrigerant circuit to reduce the refrigerant temperature in the refrigerant circuit, which cooling system is shown with a thermal storage system as well as an auxiliary condensing arrangement for coupling the refrigerant circuit and supplemental cooling system.

Abstract: A steel railway wheel with reduced axial flange deflection and reduced, thermally-induced, residual-tensile stress in the wheel rim, has a clearly defined relationship among the plate angle, the maximum depth of curvature of the wheel plate segment, the location of the maximum depth of curvature, the wheel hub and the rim, which relationship is provided for plate segments both concave and convex with respect to the wheel outboard surface.