Patents Examined by Jason C Smith
  • Patent number: 11013654
    Abstract: An overhead lift system for supporting a person with a lift unit includes an overhead rail and an elevator track. The overhead rail includes a subject support portion and a docking portion. An end of the docking portion is removably coupled to an end of the subject support portion. The elevator track is coupled to the docking portion of the overhead rail. The elevator track is configured to convey the docking portion of the overhead rail from a height of the subject support portion of the overhead rail toward a position below the height of the subject support portion of the overhead rail.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: LIKO RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT AB
    Inventor: Jonas Wallin
  • Patent number: 11014584
    Abstract: A coupler telescopic apparatus comprises a housing and a drawbar capable of extending and retracting along the housing, the housing is sleeved outside the drawbar, a limiting block is fixed arranged on an outer side face of the drawbar, a locking ring capable of coming into contact with the limiting block is sleeved inside the housing, and the locking ring is coaxial with the housing and rotatably connected to the housing; a through groove is axially formed on an inner surface of the locking ring, and the through groove correspond to the limiting block in shape, so that the limiting block passes through the through groove when the through groove is aligned with the limiting block, and then an extension of the drawbar is locked by rotating the locking ring to block the limiting block after the extension of the drawbar is completed. The present application can reduce space occupation and has simple structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: CRRC QINGDAO SIFANG ROLLING STOCK RESEARCH INSTITUTE CO., LTD. (CN)
    Inventors: Guangchao Wang, Hui Liu, Qianqian Tian
  • Patent number: 11014785
    Abstract: A building shuttle box delivery system includes a plurality of delivery ducts connected in a delivery network. The system further includes a plurality of delivery vehicles configured to travel along the delivery ducts and are accessible via a plurality of access ports distributed along the delivery network. The system may further include hold devices, movement rails, positional pads, directional pads, crawler wheel assemblies and fall brakes disposed on the delivery ducts and delivery vehicles to facilitate travel throughout the delivery network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Inventors: Julien Marchese, Frank Marchese
  • Patent number: 11014583
    Abstract: According to some embodiments, a railcar comprises: an underframe comprising a center sill extending longitudinally along a centerline of the railcar; a hopper coupled to the underframe and comprising a discharge opening; and a discharge assembly coupled to the hopper. The discharge assembly comprises: a sloped side sheet, and a discharge gate frame in a plane offset from horizontal and extending from a bottom of the sloped side sheet to proximate the center sill. The discharge gate frame at least partially surrounds the discharge opening. The discharge assembly further comprises a discharge gate coupled to the discharge gate frame. The discharge gate is operable to move from a closed position that restricts a lading from discharging to an open position that permits the lading to discharge. Moving from the closed position to the open position comprises moving at an angle upward and transverse to the railcar.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: TRINITY RAIL GROUP, LLC
    Inventor: Lee A. Reitz
  • Patent number: 11008022
    Abstract: Described herein are systems and methods providing a slip gear for an industrial cart. One embodiment includes a slip gear that includes a track gear for engaging with the track, a stabilizing bar, and a motor gear for engaging with a drive motor and the track gear. The slip gear may also include a stabilizing bar that is rotatably coupled to the track gear and the motor gear. In some embodiments, when the drive motor rotates the motor shaft, the motor gear rotates with the motor shaft to cause rotation of the track gear to propel the industrial cart. In response to an object pushing the industrial cart along the track, the stabilizing bar rotates to disengage the track gear from the track, thereby reducing friction between the industrial cart and the track.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: Grow Solutions Tech LLC
    Inventor: Gary Bret Millar
  • Patent number: 11008027
    Abstract: A railroad car truck including a first side frame, a second side frame, a bolster, and a plurality of warp restraints that are configured to prevent warping of the bolster relative to the side frames.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: Standard Car Truck Company
    Inventor: Andrew J. Morin
  • Patent number: 11008025
    Abstract: A gondola car has a body for lading carried on an underframe. The underframe includes a center sill and cross-bearers. The car has deep side beams having top chords, side sills, and side sheets. The lower portion of the car includes tubs that seat between the cross-bearers. The car may have an internal volume of more than 8000 cu. ft. The car may have rotary dump claw sockets. The car has opposed internal and external stiffeners aligned at the longitudinal stations of the cross-bearers. The internal stiffeners may be triangular cantilevers extending upwardly inside the side sheets. The side sheet lies intermediate the stiffeners and their flanges. The top chords may be wider in cross-section than the side sills. The side sills may define torque tubes that co-operate with the sidewall stiffeners and the top chords to resist lateral deflection. The car may include a false deck, or dog-house at one end to accommodate the brake reservoir and brake valve, such that the car is longitudinally asymmetric.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: NATIONAL STEEL CAR LIMITED
    Inventor: James W. Forbes
  • Patent number: 11008711
    Abstract: A segmented track for a Maglev vehicle includes a structural support portion and a Maglev portion fastened to the structural support portion. Each segment of the structural support portion is formed by fusing together three cast metal components. Neighboring ones of the structural support segments are joined together end-to-end by fused metal, and neighboring ones of the reaction rail segments are joined together end-to-end by fused metal. The positioning and joining of the successive segments is done in the field using on site jigs and machines.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: SKYTRAN, INC.
    Inventor: John Cole
  • Patent number: 11001974
    Abstract: The present invention concerns an insulating joint for electrically insulating a pair of adjacent rail sections of a railway track, each rail section extending along a longitudinal axis and defining at least one connecting surface substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and a plurality of lateral surfaces extending along the longitudinal axis. The insulating joint comprises a joint body having substantially the same cross section as the rail sections and defining two contacting surfaces, each contacting surface being intended to be in contact with the connecting surface of one of the rail sections. The joint body is made from an insulating material comprising a reinforcing structure made of metal or carbon fibers, the reinforcing structure being placed inside of the joint body with a distance from the contacting surfaces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2021
    Assignee: ALSTOM TRANSPORT TECHNOLOGIES
    Inventors: Nicholas Nagrodsky, Jared Cooper
  • Patent number: 11001973
    Abstract: A gauge spacing apparatus for positioning pot sleepers with respect to existing sleepers of a railway track has a pair of turnout rails, which are separated from one another by a desired gauge distance. The gauge spacing apparatus includes a first guide member aligned with and secured with respect to a portion of the existing rail; and a second guide member angled with respect to the first guide member at a turnout angle. The second guide member is aligned with a portion of a turnout rail to allow the turnout rail to be provided with supporting pot sleepers, such that the desired gauge between the turnout rails is maintained. Also provided are a rectangular gauge spacing apparatus, a shear plate arrangement for providing supported engagement between first and second sections of rail, and a support framework for supporting a planar supporting member spanning over an existing rail.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2021
    Assignee: Non Intrusive Crossover System Limited
    Inventors: Roy Anderson, Donald McCallum, Henry Maxwell
  • Patent number: 10994753
    Abstract: The rail vehicle has a guide device configured to guide traveling of a bogie on a traveling track by rolling guide wheels in a state of bringing the guide wheels into contact with guide rails installed on both sides of the traveling track in a vehicle width direction perpendicular to a traveling direction, wherein: the guide device has an arm and the guide wheels, the arm having a central portion fixed to a stationary member, extending to both sides in the vehicle width direction, and having both end portions elastically deformable in a direction in which the guide rails extend, the guide wheels being mounted on the arm at the both end portions of the arm in the vehicle width direction; and a center of each of the guide wheels is displaced from a center line of the arm, the center line extending in the vehicle width direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Toshifumi Kanno, Kouji Esaki, Koshi Tanimoto
  • Patent number: 10988151
    Abstract: A system controls a level crossing of a railway track installation. The railway track installation includes at least one track. The system includes at least two magnetometers associated with the at least one track and placed at corners of a crossing area between the at least one track and a road. The system also includes a level crossing control unit configured for receiving data from the magnetometers. Each magnetometer is arranged to detect a respective magnetic field vector of the earth's magnetic field and to send data representative of the magnetic field vector to the control unit. The control unit is configured to elaborate the data to detect changes in the magnetic field vectors due to the presence of a train in the crossing area and to control the level crossing as a function of the detected changes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignee: ALSTOM TRANSPORT TECHNOLOGIES
    Inventors: John Hounschell, Jeffrey Fries, James Frisbie, Tony Spagnolia, Brian Isaacson
  • Patent number: 10986108
    Abstract: A system for providing security to a railway system, the system comprising: a data monitoring and processing hub; a network comprising a plurality of data collection agents synchronized to a same network clock and configured to monitor railway infrastructure devices and onboard devices of rolling stock having a train communication network (TCN), train to wayside communications (such as GSM-R) and forward monitored data to the hub for processing by the hub to detect anomalies in railway operation that are indicative of a cyber-attack; wherein an agent of the plurality of data collection agents monitoring an onboard device connected to the TCN of a given rolling stock receives signals propagated to or from the device via the TCN and forwards to the hub data based on a given received signal together with a time stamp comprising a network clock time at which the given received signal is received by the agent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2021
    Assignee: CYLUS CYBER SECURITY LTD.
    Inventors: Gal Shmueli, Michael Shifman, Amir Levintal
  • Patent number: 10981584
    Abstract: A wheel load adjusting apparatus used in a railcar, and the railcar includes: first and second air springs arranged between a carbody and a first bogie so as to be spaced apart from each other in a car width direction; third and fourth air springs arranged between the carbody and a second bogie so as to be spaced apart from each other in the car width direction; and first to fourth automatic level controlling valves provided upstream of the first four air springs and configured to adjust heights of the four air springs to maintain constant height of the air springs, wherein when the railcar passes through a curve, the wheel load adjusting apparatus limits an air supply/air discharge operation of at least one of the four automatic level controlling valves to suppress an increase in a pressure difference between at least two of the four air springs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2021
    Assignee: KAWASAKI JUKOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yuta Yoshimatsu, Takafumi Okamoto, Takehiro Nishimura, Yoshi Sato, Keiichiro Kamura, Koichi Murata, Hirohide Matsushima
  • Patent number: 10982394
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for retrieving and placing tie plates is disclosed. The machine may place at least one railroad tie plate in a hopper assembly for storage and transfer of the at least one railroad tie plate, transfer the at least one railroad tie plate from the hopper assembly to a conveyor assembly, upright the at least one railroad tie plate, singulate the at least one railroad tie plate, orient the at least one railroad tie plate, and place the at least one railroad tie plate on a railroad tie.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2021
    Assignee: Sperling Railway Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Fred S. Sperling, Chad H. Sperling
  • Patent number: 10981583
    Abstract: A fairing for arrangement between two vehicle parts, in particular of a rail vehicle, movably connected to one another, having at least one fairing element that is arranged at a respective vehicle part, that is elastically deformable, and that has a U-shaped or arcuate cross-section. The fairing also has at least one stabilization body that extends at least sectionally into the fairing element and extends from at least one front face of the fairing element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2021
    Assignee: HÜBNER GMBH & CO. KG
    Inventors: Lars Krug, Andreas Wiegrefe
  • Patent number: 10974741
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an actuator for controlling a wheelset of a rail vehicle comprising: an axle casing for fastening to an undercarriage or to a wheelset bearing housing of the rail vehicle; a synchronized cylinder that is provided in the axle casing and that comprises a piston surface that has a piston rod passing through the axle casing at each of its two areal sides; and a housing that is movable in accordance with a movement of the synchronized cylinder with respect to the axle casing, wherein a piston spring element that connects a respective piston rod to the housing is arranged at the end of the respective piston rod remote from the piston surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: Liebherr-Transportation Systems GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventor: Richard Schneider
  • Patent number: 10974744
    Abstract: A switch system for rail-guided vehicle-based transport systems includes a turntable provided with a single straight rail and a single curved rail integral with said turntable, said turntable being rotatable about a rotating shaft, said rotating shaft being arranged such that it is shifted with respect to said straight rail and said curved rail. The switch system is simple and economical and prevents vehicles from stopping as they approach the switch system when the switch system changes its position, and allows the free passage of the vehicle, without the rails hindering the passage of the wheels of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: Mecalux, S.A.
    Inventor: Albert Forés Ràfols
  • Patent number: 10975526
    Abstract: A rail maintenance vehicle includes a frame, a workhead, and a vibration unit. The frame includes wheels that travel along rails. The vibration unit includes a rod member having a coil assembly coupled thereto. The vibration unit further includes a core assembly operable to receive the rod member therein. The core assembly includes a plurality of magnet members disposed along the periphery of the core assembly. The coil assembly and magnet members are operable to impart linear motion to the rod member relative to the core assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: HARSCO TECHNOLOGIES LLC
    Inventor: Syed Reza Sami
  • Patent number: 10974739
    Abstract: A bogie (100) for a rail vehicle. The bogie (100) comprises a frame (10) that is mounted on one or more wheel axles (20). The bogie (100) comprises at least one support surface for a vehicle body (40). At least one liftable surface on the bogie (100) is designed in such a way that its vertical distance, from the support surface, can be modified by a lifting element (50).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: STADLER RAIL AG
    Inventor: Alberto Cortesi