Railcar bridge plate

Abstract

A bridge plate for interconnecting two railcars and supporting the weight of a vehicle moving between the railcars. The bridge plate includes a substantially continuous top surface and is formed as a composite of a plurality of materials. The bridge plate includes a plurality of longitudinal sections extending from a bottom surface of the bridge plate, the sections formed by combining glass fibers and resin that enclose a foam plastic core, resulting in a lighter weight bridge plate than industry standard bridge plates. A traction surface can be integrally formed on the top surface. The bridge plate can include at least one handle. The assembly can also include a pin assembly for rotatingly engaging the bridge plate assembly to a railcar. The pin assembly can include a handle portion accessible from a top surface and/or the bottom surface of the bridge plate.

1 . An apparatus for supporting a vehicle moving between two rail cars comprising: 
 a bridge plate formed of glass fibers and resin including a substantially continuous top surface and a bottom surface; and    the bottom surface defined by a plurality of parallel longitudinal sections, each section formed of glass fibers and resin enclosing a foam plastic core;    
   
   
       2 . The apparatus of claim I wherein the bridge plate further comprises: 
 at least one handle.    
   
   
       3 . The apparatus of  claim 2  wherein the at least one handle further comprises: 
 a first and second handles.    
   
   
       4 . The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the top surface defines a traction surface integrally formed with respect to the bridge plate.  
   
   
       5 . The apparatus of  claim 4  wherein the traction surface further comprises a plurality of projections spaced outward from an adjacent top surface.  
   
   
       6 . The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the bridge plate further comprises: 
 a tip portion and a middle portion.    
   
   
       7 . The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the bridge plate further comprises: 
 a pin assembly.    
   
   
       8 . The apparatus of  claim 7  wherein the pin assembly engages the bridge plate with respect to a rail car.  
   
   
       9 . The apparatus of  claim 8  wherein the pin assembly is moveably associated with respect to the bridge plate.  
   
   
       10 . The apparatus of  claim 9  wherein the pin assembly further comprises: 
 a first pin and a second pin.    
   
   
       11 . The apparatus of  claim 10  further comprising: 
 means for moving the second pin relative to the bridge plate.    
   
   
       12 . The apparatus of  claim 11  wherein moving means is accessible to an operator from the top surface of the bridge plate and the bottom surface of the bridge plate.  
   
   
       13 . The apparatus of  claim 10  further comprising: 
 means for biasing the first pin relative to the second pin.    
   
   
       14 . The apparatus of  claim 13  further comprising: 
 means for compressing the biasing means accessible from both the top surface of the bridge plate and the bottom surface of the bridge plate.    
   
   
       15 . The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the bridge plate is formed as a composite of a plurality of materials.  
   
   
       16 . The apparatus of  claim 15  wherein one of the plurality of materials is glass fibers.  
   
   
       17 . The apparatus of  claim 15  wherein one of the plurality of materials is a resin resistant to ultraviolet light.  
   
   
       18 . The apparatus of  claim 15  wherein one of the plurality of materials is a resin defining a color of the bridge plate.  
   
   
       19 . The apparatus of  claim 15  wherein one of the plurality of materials is a resin resistant to acid rain.  
   
   
       20 . A method for supporting a vehicle moving between two rail cars comprising the steps of: 
 forming a bridge plate made of glass fibers and resin including a substantially continuous top surface and a bottom surface wherein the bottom surface possesses a plurality of parallel longitudinal sections formed by glass fibers and resin enclosing a foam plastic core.    
   
   
       21 . The method of  claim 20  wherein the forming step further comprises the step of: 
 forming the bridge plate by one of a compression molding process and a resin transfer process.    
   
   
       22 . The method of  claim 21  wherein the forming step further comprises the step of: 
 integrally forming a traction surface on the bridge plate.    
   
   
       23 . The method of  claim 22  further comprising the steps of rotatingly engaging the bridge plate with respect to a rail car with a pin assembly having a handle wherein the handle is accessible from the top surface of the bridge plate and the bottom surface of the bridge plate.  
   
   
       24 . An apparatus for supporting a vehicle moving between two railcars comprising: 
 a bridge plate formed of glass fibers and resin including a substantially continuous top surface, the bridge plate operable to extend between first and second railcars;    a plurality of longitudinal sections extending from a downwardly facing surface of the bridge plate formed by glass and resin enclosing a foam plastic core; and    means for rotatingly engaging the bridge plate with respect to at least one of the railcars, wherein engaging means includes a handle accessible from an upwardly facing surface defined by the bridge plate.    
   
   
       25 . The apparatus of  claim 24  wherein the handle is accessible from the downwardly facing surface.  
   
   
       26 . The apparatus of  claim 24  wherein the top surface defines a traction portion.  
   
   
       27 . The apparatus of  claim 26  wherein the traction portion further comprises: 
 a plurality of projections extending outward from the top surface.    
   
   
       28 . The apparatus of  claim 27  wherein each of the plurality of projections are spaced a predetermined distance from every other projection.