Railway rolling stock – Trains – Articulated
Patent
1997-03-17
1998-10-27
Morano, S. Joseph
Railway rolling stock
Trains
Articulated
105159, 410 53, 2804181, B61D 318, B61F 312
Patent
active
058265171
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to bimodal hauling vehicles which can be converted for use on both railways and roadways and to a method for using the vehicles. In particular, the present invention is a bimodal hauling vehicle and associated method of use which permit one operator to convert the vehicle between highway and railway operation at a grade crossing.
The idea of moving one kind of vehicle on another vehicle is not new in North America. Between 1843 and 1854, canal boats were hauled by cog railroad over mountains from one stream to another. During the 1850s and the 1860s, boats were used to haul supplies, horses and wagons of Westward bound pioneers on inland waterways. On festive occasions, Canadian railroads operated special picnic trains hauling passengers and sleighs that were mounted on flat cars. In the United States, the first railway-highway intermodal operations were termed "piggyback" operations. The early piggyback operations consisted mainly of trains hauling farmers wagons. The first piggyback train began operation in 1885 and hauled 16 wagons on eight flat cars. The distance travelled was 20 miles and the savings in time was substantial. As the service became more well known, special cars were built that could haul four wagons each. Passenger service for the owners or drivers of the wagons was furnished in a separate car. The operation only lasted ten years, but it was the beginning of railway-highway intermodal travel in the United States.
The railroad faced two handicaps in competing with motor carriers. First, rail service did not offer the door-to-door pickup and delivery service that was provided by motor carriers, and second, freight in less than carload quantities needed better packaging for shipment by rail than for shipment by motor carrier. Piggyback service was intended to overcome these problems.
In 1926, the Chicago, North Shore and Milwaukee Railroads began hauling railroad-owned highway trailers on flat cars, providing the first modern piggyback service in the United States.
Between 1939 and 1951, the railroads' efforts to expand piggyback service were largely abandoned. The economic pressure on the railroads to increase traffic was greatly relieved by the freight shipments generated by World War II and by the pent-up demand for consumer goods immediately following the end of the war. When the backlog of orders was reduced, rail tonnage again began to decline. Before any action was taken toward increasing piggyback services, however, the Korean War led to an increase in the demand for service to such an extent that railroads did not feel that it was necessary to explore avenues which might yield additional freight tonnage. When rail freight tonnage began to decline in 1952, the railroads again became interested in methods of increasing tonnage, and the search led them to a reappraisal of piggyback service. During the 1950s, piggyback operations expanded rapidly and, by the end of 1959, most of the principal railroads in the United States were providing piggyback service.
Over the years, many methods and designs of piggyback service have been developed. Each, however, is a variation of one of two primary methods. One of these methods involves hauling the complete trailer. The other method involves hauling only the trailer body. The Clejan System is representative of a technique for hauling the complete trailer, while the New York Central Railroad's Flexi-Van Service is representative of a technique for hauling only the trailer body. The Clejan System uses trailers outfitted with special railroad wheel dollies that ride on rails built into specially fitted flatbed cars. The dollies can be either permanently attached to the trailer or detachably mounted with a pin mechanism.. Detachable dollies are put on the trailer using a hydraulic jack to lift the dolly up to the trailer bottom. A pin is used to connect the dolly to the trailer. No tools are needed to connect the dolly to the trailer.
The New York Central Flexi-Van system uses tra
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The Bi-Modal RoadRailer.
RoadRailer Mark IV.
Larson, Jr. Ernest J.
Sims Roger D.
Larson, Jr. Ernest J.
Morano S. Joseph
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