Railway rolling stock – Car framing and structure – Passenger
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-25
2001-11-27
Morano, S. Joseph (Department: 3617)
Railway rolling stock
Car framing and structure
Passenger
Reexamination Certificate
active
06321660
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a vehicle cell, particularly a car body for a railway vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
On a similar vehicle cell of the prior art (DD 83378) that is realized in the form of a car body for railway vehicles, the roof and side walls are each formed from a plurality of wall elements that are joined together in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. There is a door opening in one segment of the assembled side wall. The walls themselves are realized in a sandwich structure with two outer layers, between which there is an insulating core material, and in the peripheral area, as an edge closure, there are U-shaped closing strips that are used to form the connections with the neighboring components.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention, on a vehicle cell such as a car body for railway vehicles having roof walls and side walls, each of which includes of wall segments that are connected laterally to one another in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, whereby door openings are provided in the side walls to adopt measures that make possible, with simple means, an advantageous construction concept in terms of weight, cost and maintenance.
The invention teaches that this object can generally be accomplished by means of the side wall segments that are laterally adjacent to one another having door partial cutouts in their facing vertical edges, and wherein the edges of door partial cutouts that go together and that are at the same level and run into the segment surfaces together have a length, the total of which equals one full door width.
In one configuration of a vehicle cell as claimed by the invention, the seam between neighboring wall segments is moved into the vicinity of the door, which in any case there is an at least a significant vertical separation between neighboring side wall segments. The door partial cutouts that are provided in the vicinity of neighboring wall segments for this purpose must thereby be sized so that the width of the door cutout they form when they are assembled equals the full width of the door. The side wall segments can therefore be directly connected to each other above the door cutout.
Between the vertical side edges of the side wall segments, each of which is provided with a door cutout, window cutouts can be located in locations that are favorable from a static load point of view. However, the side wall segments that are located at the ends of the vehicle cell are thereby provided with door partial cutouts only on their sides that face the respective neighboring side wall segments. The length of the end-position side wall segments preferably equals one-half the length, measured in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, of a side wall segment that has two door partial cutouts. It thereby becomes possible to have side wall segments and the outer roof walls in the longitudinal direction closed with the end of the vehicle cell, so that a roof segment straddles at least two half side wall segments with the vertical seams located there. By means of a firm connection of the side wall segments with the overlapping roof wall segments, there is sufficient rigidity of the total vehicle cell even in the vicinity of the seams between the individual side wall segments. The joint location between two roof wall segments always lies in the vicinity of the longitudinal center above a side wall segment that is provided with two partial door cutouts. Thus there is an optimal connection in the vicinity of these joint locations between a side wall segment and two roof wall segments that are adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction.
The wall segments are realized in particular in the form of a sandwich structure with two outer layers and a grid structure that is located in a stationary fashion between them and is made of frame bars that are connected to one another and sandwich cores that are inserted between them. Frame bars are thereby also engaged in the narrow arm of the side wall segment that straddles the door opening, and close its peripheral zones as in the other areas, so that these parts of the frame bars that point outward can also be used to form a strong connection with neighboring components.
So that the frame bars can be connected to one another without any special complexity or expense, joint connectors are provided that are in a plug-type connection with the corresponding ends of the frame bars. Such joint connectors can be provided in corners, at branches or at intersections. The joint connectors can then be equipped with a corresponding number of arms that can be rigidly connected with one another.
To eliminate the presence in the connectors of zones that are subjected to particularly severe loads and to make possible an adjustment to the extensibility of the fiber composite outer layers, as well as for the equalization of manufacturing tolerances, however, it may be appropriate to make the arms of the joint connectors deformable, e.g. to connect them in a hinged manner each to an associated common joint support. The hinged connection can therefore be accomplished, for example, by means of axial bolts or also by means of elastic bands that are realized in one piece with the joint connectors and the joint support, and are made in particular out of elastic material, preferably plastic. Such a sandwich structure can therefore be highly variable as the result of a simple change in the length of the frame bars, and it is also extremely easy to manufacture.
The frame bars and joint connectors as well as the core material are permanently glued to the outer layers when the wall segments are in their final assembled state. At least one of the outer layers can thereby consist of a plurality of layers that are permanently connected to one another, whereby it is appropriate to provide an internal load-bearing layer next to the core material, to which load-bearing layer at least one fire protection layer and/or one decorative layer is firmly attached. It is thereby advantageous if the outer layer, in particular in the inner load-bearing layer, and preferably in the vicinity of corners and at door and/or window cutouts, has fiber inserts that are made of high-strength carbon fibers, while the other areas can be made of a fiber composite, in particular a glass fiber composite material. The corners of these cutouts, which are at increased risk for tears and fractures, are then protected in a suitable manner against tearing and similar forms of damage. In addition, there are simple opportunities for integration of the interior furniture and fixtures, whereby separate thermal insulation and acoustic insulation, as well as smooth inside and outside walls, can be realized by this construction.
The invention is explained in greater detail below with reference to the exemplary embodiment that is illustrated in the accompanying schematic drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5042395 (1991-08-01), Wackerle et al.
patent: 5059056 (1991-10-01), Banthia et al.
patent: 5458066 (1995-10-01), Ishida et al.
patent: 5857414 (1999-01-01), Thoman et al.
patent: 83378 (1895-03-01), None
patent: 0602259 (1994-06-01), None
patent: 0697318 (1996-02-01), None
Fretwurst Thomas
Horoschenkoff Alexander
Scheid Peter
Sch{overscore (a)}hl Wolfgang
DaimlerChrysler Rail Systems GmbH
McCarry, Jr. Robert J.
Morano S. Joseph
Webb Ziesenheim & Logsdon Orkin & Hanson, P.C.
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