Abstract: A railroad car articulated split friction wedge assembly including first and second articulated friction wedges, wherein the first friction wedge includes a first body, a first decoupling insert, a first pivot member pivotally moveable with respect to the first body and the first decoupling insert, and a first wear pad removably attached to the first pivot member, and wherein the second friction wedge includes a second body, a second decoupling insert, a second pivot member pivotally moveable with respect to the second body and the second decoupling insert, and independently of the first body and the first pivot member, and a second wear pad removably attached to the second pivot member, which in combination provide required damping, provide high warp restraint, reduce binding, and enable lateral decoupling.

Abstract: A rail vehicle bogie traction device is provided, which includes a center pin and two traction rubber bag assemblies. Each of the traction rubber bag assemblies includes a traction rubber stack and a rubber bag, the rubber bag is filled with fluid, and a pressure of the rubber bag is settable. The traction rubber stack is connected to the rubber bag. The center pin is fixed on a lower surface of a vehicle body chassis bolster. Each of the two traction rubber bag assemblies has one end connected to the center pin, and another end connected to a cross beam of a rail vehicle frame. The rail vehicle bogie traction device has nonlinear characteristics, which may effectively transmit a longitudinal load, and may also prevent high-frequency vibration of the frame from transmitting to the vehicle chassis bolster and the vehicle body via the traction device.

Abstract: A rail road freight car truck has a truck bolster and a pair of side frames, the truck bolster being mounted transversely relative to the side frames. The mounting interface between the ends of the axles and the sideframe pedestals allows lateral rocking motion of the sideframes in the manner of a swing motion truck. The lateral swinging motion is combined with a longitudinal self steering capability. The self steering capability may be obtained by use of a longitudinally oriented rocker that may tend to permit resistance to deflection that is proportional to the weight carried across the interface. The truck may have auxiliary centering elements mounted in the pedestal seats, and those auxiliary centering elements may be made of resilient elastomeric material. The truck may also have friction dampers that have a disinclination to stick-slip behavior. The friction dampers may be provided with brake linings, or similar features, on the face engaging the sideframe columns, on the slope face, or both.

Abstract: The invention provides a bogie which comprises a bolster, two side frames and four constant contact dampers, two sides of two ends of the bolster are respectively provided with a wedge pocket; the four constant contact dampers are respectively arranged in four wedge pockets, and each of the four constant contact dampers comprises a wedge and a damping spring; the damping spring is arranged in an inner cavity of the wedge; one end of the damping spring bears against a top inner surface of the inner cavity of the wedge, and the other end of the damping spring bears against a bottom plate of the wedge pocket, wherein the bogie further comprises four through holes and four ejectors which respectively correspond to the four constant contact dampers; the through holes are arranged on the bottom plate, and the position of each of the four through holes on the bottom plate corresponds to the position where the damping spring bears against the bottom plate and a load spring of the bogie; and one end of the ejector pen

Abstract: A rotation impeding device for a vehicle having a first vehicle component comprising a running gear and a second vehicle component comprising a wagon body supported thereon the rotation impeding device comprising a friction element carrier for a first friction element, wherein the friction element carrier is connectable to the running gear or the wagon body in such a manner torsionally rigid about a height axis of the vehicle that the wagon body is supported on the running gear by means of the friction element, wherein the wagon body is rotatable relative to the running gear under a friction-laden relative movement between the first friction element and a second friction element impeding a rotation about the height axis.

Abstract: A rail road freight car truck has a truck bolster and a pair of side frames, the truck bolster being mounted transversely relative to the side frames. The mounting interface between the ends of the axles and the sideframe pedestals allows lateral rocking motion of the sideframes in the manner of a swing motion truck. The lateral swinging motion is combined with a longitudinal self steering capability. The self steering capability may be obtained by use of a longitudinally oriented rocker that may tend to permit resistance to deflection that is proportional to the weight carried across the interface. The truck may have auxiliary centering elements mounted in the pedestal seats, and those auxiliary centering elements may be made of resilient elastomeric material. The truck may also have friction dampers that have a disinclination to stick-slip behavior. The friction dampers may be provided with brake linings, or similar features, on the face engaging the sideframe columns, on the slope face, or both.

Abstract: A rail road freight car truck has a truck bolster and a pair of side frames, the truck bolster being mounted transversely relative to the side frames. The mounting interface between the ends of the axles and the sideframe pedestals allows lateral rocking motion of the sideframes in the manner of a swing motion truck. The lateral swinging motion is combined with a longitudinal self steering capability. The self steering capability may be obtained by use of a longitudinally oriented rocker that may tend to permit resistance to self steering that is proportional to the weight carried across the interface. The trucks may have auxiliary centering elements mounted in the pedestal seats, and those auxiliary centering elements may be made of resilient elastomeric material. The truck may also have friction dampers that have a disinclination to stick-slip behavior. The friction dampers may be provided with brake linings, or similar features, on the face engaging the sideframe columns, on the slope face, or both.

Abstract: A rotation impeding device for a vehicle having a first vehicle component comprising a running gear and a second vehicle component comprising a wagon body supported thereon the rotation impeding device comprising a friction element carrier for a first friction element, wherein the friction element carrier is connectable to the running gear or the wagon body in such a manner torsionally rigid about a height axis of the vehicle that the wagon body is supported on the running gear by means of the friction element, wherein the wagon body is rotatable relative to the running gear under a friction-laden relative movement between the first friction element and a second friction element impeding a rotation about the height axis.

Abstract: An auto rack rail road freight car is provided for carrying low density, relatively high value, relatively fragile lading. The car employs wheels that are greater than 33 inches in diameter.

Abstract: A rail road freight car truck has a truck bolster and a pair of side frames, the truck bolster being mounted transversely relative to the side frames. The mounting interface between the ends of the axles and the sideframe pedestals allows lateral rocking motion of the sideframes in the manner of a swing motion truck such that the bolster can move laterally relative to the sideframes. The range of travel of the bolster may be greater when the car is fully laded than the car has no lading. This may be achieved by the use of tapered bolster gibs. Friction dampers are mounted to work between the bolster and the sideframes. The friction dampers may be provided with brake linings, or similar features, on the face engaging the sideframe columns, on the slope face, or both. The friction dampers may be mounted in a four-cornered arrangement at each end of the truck bolster.

Abstract: A swing motion rail road freight car truck is provided that does not have lateral underslung cross bracing in the nature of a transom, a frame brace, or lateral rods. The truck has a truck bolster and a pair of sideframes, the truck bolster being mounted transversely relative to the sideframes. The sideframes have spring seats for the groups of springs. The springs seats may be on rockers, or may be rigidly mounted in the sideframes. Friction dampers are provided in inboard and outboard pairs. The biasing force on the dampers urges then to that act between the bolster ands and sideframes to resist parallelogram deflection of the truck.

Abstract: A rail road car truck has side frames mounted to rock on the wheelsets. A bolster is mounted cross-wise on the sideframes, each end of the bolster being seated on a spring group, each spring group being seated in one of the sideframe windows. The bolster has damper groups mounted at each end to work between the end of the bolster and the columns of the sideframe windows. The truck has a dynamic response to lateral perturbations that includes a first component due to the swinging of the sideframes on the sideframe pedestal rockers, and a second component that is due to lateral shear in the main spring groups. The pendulum action may tend to be softer than the lateral shear in the springs, and so therefore may tend to dominate the lateral response. This swing-dominant lateral response may be combined with a multiple damper arrangement.

Abstract: A swing motion rail road freight car truck is provided that does not have lateral underslung cross bracing in the nature of a transom, a frame brace, or lateral rods. The truck has a truck bolster and a pair of side frames, the truck bolster being mounted transversely relative to the side frames. The side frames have spring seats for the groups of springs. The springs seats may be on rockers, or may be rigidly mounted in the side frames. Friction dampers are provided in inboard and outboard pairs. The biasing force on the dampers urges then to that act between the bolster ands and sideframes to resist parallelogram deflection of the truck.

Abstract: An autorack rail road car is provided with a truck that includes a pair of sideframes supported on wheel sets with bearing adapters positioned therebetween. The bearing adapters and the sideframes have associated parts or surfaces with curvatures configured to permit lateral swinging of the sideframes. A bolster is supported by the sideframes, and sets of laterally arranged dampers are provided therebetween to control the relationship between the sideframes and the bolster.

Abstract: A vehicle driven on rails includes a vehicle frame, a wheel set, a pivotable truck and at least one drive unit being disposed in the pivotable truck for acting upon the wheel set. An intermediate support is connected to the pivotable truck and to the drive unit. The intermediate support is also connected to the vehicle frame, such as by a threaded spindle connecting the vehicle frame to the intermediate support during assembly.

Abstract: A hydraulic snubber device and more particularly, a snubber adapted to be interposed in the spring group between a bolster and a side frame member and having a single primary operating cartridge which is selectively usable with a plurality of differing configuration snubber casings or envelopes for a variety of spring group positions; and, further, a snubber device which is operationally positionable within the center of a spring group and is captively retained therein solely by communication of the snubber casing thereof with laterally adjacent springs of such a spring group.

Abstract: A damping device in a bogie of a railbound freight car has good ride properties independent of the load carried by the car by making the damping device with friction wedges of triangular cross-section, an upper surface of which confronts an adjoining load-supporting bolster beam and is joined thereto through a tertiary spring element of high stiffness in the vertical direction and of relatively low stiffness in the lateral direction. A lower surface of each friction wedge adjoins the upper side of the respective bogie suspension unit.

Abstract: The wheel and axle assembly of a single axle wheel truck for a railway car is prevented from exceeding acceptable lateral and longitudinal movement with respect to fixed body portions of the railway car by an axle stop arrangement positioned laterally outboard of the wheel truck springs. This axle stop arrangement controls the wheel set movement relative to the car body and, due to its laterally outboard positioning, engagement between the axle stop structure and the wheels is prevented.

Abstract: A damping mechanism for a truck assembly employing a resiliently mounted wedge to cooperate with a bolster in a manner to prevent wear. The damping assembly is biased outwardly and a friction plate employed between the wedge and bolster, further reducing frictional contact with the side frame.

Abstract: An articulated bogie for railroad vehicles, comprising lateral equalizing bars connecting the axle boxes, and connected to each other by a primary cross member. The lateral equalizing bars (3) are connected directly to the axle boxes (2) without the use of suspension. The primary cross member (6) is resiliently carried by vertical supports on each equalizing bar (3), the supporting arrangement being provided at each end of the cross member, the two points (7) of which are spaced and equidistant from the center. A secondary load-bearing cross member (11) is carried on the primary cross member (6) by a secondary suspension system (10).

Abstract: A railway vehicle, in particular a locomotive, has three or more trucks with the bolsters of each swivelly supported on the respective truck frames and having means for transmitting longitudinal traction and braking forces to the body underframe. The truck bolsters mount upright body-support spring devices which are yieldable in shear transversely of the locomotive to permit sufficient limited lateral movement of the body with respect to the trucks to prevent the full force of lateral blows and shocks received by the wheels from being communicated to the body and for preventing the momentum of the body from acting with its full lateral force on the truck wheels and rails.

Abstract: A railway vehicle truck has a rigid frame spring-supported at the ends of the frame side members on the journal boxes inboard of the wheels, with the central portion of the frame side members depressed to a lower level than the ends. A pair of center transoms are formed with extensions upwardly and outwardly of the side members adjacent the depressed center portions thereof, the outer extremities of the extensions being positioned outwardly of the wheels and pivotally supporting depending swing hangers. A spring plank supported from the lower ends of the swing hangers extends transversely of the truck through apertures in the depressed center portions of the frame side members, and springs carried by the outer ends of the spring planks support the ends of a bolster which extends outwardly over the frame side members.

Abstract: A friction member for use in the bolster pocket of a stabilized railroad car truck having a bolster positioned within a side frame window has a slanted friction surface adapted to bear against a slanted wear surface within the bolster pocket and a vertical friction surface adapted to bear against a side frame wear surface. The slanted friction surface has a profile in a generally horizontal plane consisting of a central flat portion and adjoining outside arcuate portions. The flat portion has a width equal to twice the distance between the side frame center line and the point of rotation of the side frame relative to the bolster, with said point of rotation being selected such that, during side frame rotation, the distance from the side frame center line to the point of intersection of the plane of the vertical friction surface and the plane of the side frame wear surface is no greater than one half of said friction member horizontal thickness.

Abstract: A three-piece dampener assembly provides means to depress vertical and horizontal oscillations between ends of a bolster of a railroad car truck and side frames of the truck. This assembly includes a control or friction shoe having an outer vertical engaging surface for contact with a vertical wear plate of a pocket formed in the side frame and an inner projecting triangular-shaped segment. The triangular segment is covered by a relativley low friction adapter and engages a like triangular-shaped wedge slot formed in a control or friction shoe housing. The housing further includes an inclined wear surface for engaging with a complementary inclined friction surface formed in the bolster and a bottom surface for supportive engagement with a coil spring carried in the side frame pocket below the bolster.

Abstract: The bolster rocker-beam of a railroad vehicle bogie is coupled to the supporting cradle at each end by means of two elastic assemblies. Each assembly is applied at one end against a downwardly inclined transverse cradle face and at the other end against a transverse rocker-beam face which is substantially parallel to the cradle face when the assemblies are at rest.