Railway Car for Transporting Semi-Trucks

Abstract

The invention is directed to a railway car for the transportation of semi-trucks. The railway car may have an interior defined by a support surface for the trucks, a pair of upstanding sidewalls, and a roof. End doors may be located at each end of the railway car for selectively permitting access to the interior thereof. The horizontal width at the ends of the railway car may be selected to permit the trucks to be loaded into the interior of the railway car.

1 . A railway car for transporting vehicles, a first of the vehicles having a pair of wheels spaced apart by a first dimension and a second of the vehicles having a pair of wheels spaced apart by a second dimension, the first dimension being greater than the second dimension, the railway car comprising: 
 a support surface for supporting the vehicles;    a pair of upstanding sidewalls along each side of the railway car;    a roof extending between the sidewalls;    one or more end doors for selectively enclosing an end of the railway car, the end doors being movable between a closed position in which the doors substantially enclose an end of the railway car, and an open position permitting access to the interior of the railway car; and    a first inner chock track and a first outer chock track positioned on the support surface, the first inner chock track being aligned with one of the wheels spaced apart by the second dimension and the first outer chock track being aligned with one of the wheels spaced apart by the first dimension when the vehicles are positioned on the support surface, the inner chock track and the outer chock track being positioned on a side of a longitudinal centerline of the support surface and capable of receiving chocks for chocking the aligned wheels.    
   
   
       2 . A railway car in accordance with  claim 1 , wherein a second inner chock track and a second outer chock track are positioned on a side of the longitudinal centerline of the support surface opposite the first inner chock track and first outer chock track and the first and second inner chock tracks are positioned on the support surface in alignment with pair of wheels spaced apart by the second dimension and the first and second outer chock tracks are positioned on the support surface in alignment with the pair of wheels spaced apart by the first dimension when the vehicles are on the support surface.  
   
   
       3 . A railway car in accordance with  claim 1 , further comprising chocks capable of restraining the vehicle.  
   
   
       4 . A railway car in accordance with  claim 3 , wherein the vehicles comprise trucks and wherein the chocks are capable of at least partially restraining at least two trucks arranged in a piggy-back manner, with a first truck being piggy-backed on a second truck.  
   
   
       5 . A railway car in accordance with  claim 1 , wherein the railway car comprises an articulated railway car.  
   
   
       6 . A method of transporting a first vehicle having a pair of wheels spaced apart by a first dimension and a second vehicle having a pair of wheels spaced apart by a second dimension, the first dimension being greater than the second dimension, using a railway car comprising a support surface for supporting the vehicles, a pair of upstanding sidewalls, a roof, one or more doors at an end of the railway car, the doors selectively operable between a closed position in which the doors substantially enclose an end of the railway car, and an open position permitting access to the railway car, and a first inner chock track and a first outer chock track on the support surface on a side of a longitudinal centerline of the support surface, the method comprising: 
 chocking one of said pair of wheels spaced apart by the first dimension by securing a chock to the first outer chock track; and    chocking one of said pair of wheels spaced apart by the second dimension by securing a chock to the first inner chock track.    
   
   
       7 . A method of transporting a vehicle using a railway car in accordance with  claim 6 , wherein railway car comprises a second inner chock track and a second outer chock track on the support surface on a side of the longitudinal centerline of the support surface opposite the first inner chock track and first outer chock track.  
   
   
       8 . A method of transporting a vehicle using a railway car in accordance with  claim 7 , wherein the method comprises: 
 chocking one of said pair of wheels spaced apart by the first dimension by securing a chock to the second outer chock track; and    chocking one of said pair of wheels spaced apart by the second dimension by securing a chock to the second inner chock track.    
   
   
       9 . A method of transporting a vehicle using a railway car in accordance with  claim 8 , wherein the vehicles comprise trucks, and at least two-trucks are arranged in a piggy-back manner with a first truck being piggy-backed on a second truck.  
   
   
       10 . A method of transporting at least two vehicles in an enclosed interior of a railway car having a single support surface for supporting the vehicles, the method comprising: 
 arranging at least two vehicles in a coupled manner;    providing the railway car with end doors disposed proximate at least one end of the railway car;    moving the end doors to their open positions to provide access to the interior of the railway car;    loading the at least two vehicles arranged in the coupled manner into the interior of the railway car; and    closing the end doors to enclose the at least two vehicles arranged in the coupled manner within the interior of the railway car.    
   
   
       11 . A method of transporting vehicles according to  claim 10 , wherein the railway car is articulated and has adjacent units and at least one bridge plate extending therebetween, and the step of loading the at least two vehicles arranged in the coupled manner into the interior of the railway car includes the step of moving the at least two vehicles arranged in the coupled manner across the at least one bridge plate extending between the adjacent units of the articulated railway car.  
   
   
       12 . A method of transporting vehicles according to  claim 10 , wherein the railway car is coupled to an adjacent railway car and at least one bridge plate extends therebetween, and the step of loading the at least two vehicles arranged in the coupled manner into the interior of the railway car includes the step of moving the at least two vehicles arranged in the coupled manner across the at least one bridge plate extending between the railway car and the coupled, adjacent railway car.  
   
   
       13 . A method of transporting vehicles according to  claim 10 , further including the steps of: 
 opening the end doors to permit access to the vehicles within the interior of the railway car after the step of closing the end doors; and    unloading the at least two vehicles arranged in the coupled manner from within the interior of the railway car.    
   
   
       14 . A method of transporting vehicles according to  claim 10 , including the step of providing a support surface for the vehicles, a pair of upstanding sidewalls generally extending on longitudinal sides of the railway car, and a roof extending between the sidewalls to enclose the railway car.  
   
   
       15 . A method of transporting vehicles according to  claim 14 , wherein the end doors selectively operable between open and closed positions by pivoting about axes disposed proximate edges thereof.  
   
   
       16 . A method of transporting vehicles according to  claim 15 , wherein the end doors in their open positions do not extend beyond the end of the railway car.  
   
   
       17 . A method of transporting vehicles according to  claim 15 , including reducing racking of the sidewalls of the railway car with at least one brace member extending between the sidewalls located on opposite sides of the railway car.  
   
   
       18 . A method of transporting vehicles according to  claim 14 , wherein at least one the pair of vehicles comprises a pair of first pair of wheels spaced apart by a first dimension and a second pair of wheels spaced apart by a second dimension, wherein inner and outer chock tracks are provided on the support surface of the railway car, the method further including: 
 aligning one of the first pair of wheels with the inner chock tracks and one of the second pair of wheels with the outer chock tracks;    chocking one of the first pair of wheels relative to the inner chock tracks; and chocking one of the second pair of wheels relative to the outer chock tracks.    
   
   
       19 . A method of transporting vehicles in accordance with  claim 10 , wherein the vehicles comprise trucks.  
   
   
       20 . A method of transporting vehicles in accordance with  claim 19 , wherein the trucks are coupled in a piggy-back manner.