A centering apparatus for bi-directionally pivotable hopper doors. The apparatus is coupled between a frame of a hopper car and a bell crank of a hopper door. The apparatus includes a housing with a piston extending from one end. An end of the piston within the housing includes a piston head. A pair of coil springs are disposed within the housing on opposite sides of the piston head and counteract one another to bias the piston head toward the center of the housing and thus bias the hopper door toward a closed state. In a second configuration the apparatus includes a double-acting actuator with a pair of independent piston assemblies. An actuation system coupled to the actuator maintains the actuator and an associated hopper door in a closed position in a normal state and returns the hopper door to the closed position upon a failure in the system.

Disclosed is a railway hopper car comprising a car body (6), a top cover (1, 2), a bogie (24), a braking device (21), a coupler buffer device (22), and a bottom door (25, 28) and a bottom door opening and closing mechanism (23) mounted at a discharge port at the bottom of a chassis. The railway hopper car further comprises a longitudinal saddle (31) disposed in the center of the car body (6) in the length direction thereof and arranged along the longitudinal direction of the car body (6). By providing the longitudinal saddle (31), the sequential requirement to close the left bottom door (25) and the right bottom door (28) is eliminated, thereby simplifying the structure of the linkage bottom door opening and closing mechanism and reducing manufacture and maintenance costs thereof.

Disclosed is a railway hopper car comprising a car body (6), a top cover (1, 2), a bogie (24), a braking device (21), a coupler buffer device (22), and a bottom door (25, 28) and a bottom door opening and closing mechanism (23) mounted at a discharge port at the bottom of a chassis. The railway hopper car further comprises a longitudinal saddle (31) disposed in the center of the car body (6) in the length direction thereof and arranged along the longitudinal direction of the car body (6). By providing the longitudinal saddle (31), the sequential requirement to close the left bottom door (25) and the right bottom door (28) is eliminated, thereby simplifying the structure of the linkage bottom door opening and closing mechanism and reducing manufacture and maintenance costs thereof.

A railcar hatch control system and method for operating railcar hatches of a multi-railcar train is disclosed. A multi-railcar train may have a locomotive and a plurality of railcars having railcar hatches that can be opened and closed. The system and method may include displaying railcar identification information for the railcars on an operator display device, and receiving selections of railcars from an operator that will have a railcar hatch operation performed thereon, such as opening or closing the hatches. The railcar hatch operation is input, and the system and method control the railcar hatch operation being performed only on the selected railcars, and not on the railcars that have not been selected by the operator. The system and method may have operator interfaces devices at an operator station of the train, or at a remote location or on a remote device that communicates wirelessly with the train.

A gondola car has a door and an associated door frame the end. The door hangs hingedly from the header of the frame. The header runs across the top of the door opening and is connected to the top chords at either side. The door posts are positioned inside the side sheets and tie into the header at each upper corner. The side sheets lap onto the door posts to allow longitudinal adjustment of the side assemblies and the door frame relative to each other, at assembly. The side posts are connected to the header with a tie plate that is bolted to both members. The car may also have a tarp dome at each end. The tarp dome has non-welded connections that have play to permit the tarp dome to accommodate movement of the top chords.

A gondola car has a door and an associated door frame the end. The door hangs hingedly from the header of the frame. The header runs across the top of the door opening and is connected to the top chords at either side. The door posts are positioned inside the side sheets and tie into the header at each upper corner. The side sheets lap onto the door posts to allow longitudinal adjustment of the side assemblies and the door frame relative to each other, at assembly. The side posts are connected to the header with a tie plate that is bolted to both members. The car may also have a tarp dome at each end. The tarp dome has non-welded connections that have play to permit the tarp dome to accommodate movement of the top chords.

A railroad hopper car has a hopper carried between two trucks, and has convergent end and side slope sheets that feed a bottom discharge. The bottom discharge has a rectangular frame. The bottom discharge is lower than the center sill. The car has a flat bottom discharge having multiple arrays of louvers. All of the lading discharges through the flat bottom. The side sheets extend downwardly beyond the side sills, so that the side slope sheets terminate below the side sills. The car has laterally extending shear force transfer members that provide a shear connection between the side walls of the car. The shear force transfer members have openings to permit lading from the main containment volume of the car to pass therethough to the lading discharges. The louvers are joined to move together. Alternatively, the gate may include two opposed sliding doors separated by a beam that runs under the center sill.

A railroad hopper car has a hopper carried between two trucks, and has convergent end and side slope sheets that feed a bottom discharge. The bottom discharge has a rectangular frame. The bottom discharge is lower than the center sill. The car has a flat bottom discharge having multiple arrays of louvers. All of the lading discharges through the flat bottom. The side sheets extend downwardly beyond the side sills, so that the side slope sheets terminate below the side sills. The car has laterally extending shear force transfer members that provide a shear connection between the side walls of the car. The shear force transfer members have openings to permit lading from the main containment volume of the car to pass therethough to the lading discharges. The louvers are joined to move together. Alternatively, the gate may include two opposed sliding doors separated by a beam that runs under the center sill.

A hopper railcar includes a plurality of hoppers for carrying material laden material, wherein each hopper has a lower discharge chute formed by converging side sheets and end sheets defining a transverse opening; and pivoted transverse door for each transverse opening for selectively opening and closing and closed by a pivoted door, the pivoted door having a pivot axis perpendicular to a longitudinal length of the railcar, and lateral deflectors on lateral sides of the doors with each of the deflectors having a side face extending above an interior facing surface of the doors upon which laden flows with the door in the open position. A method of retrofitting hopper railcars to include deflectors is also disclosed.

A hopper railcar includes a plurality of hoppers for carrying material laden material, wherein each hopper has a lower discharge chute formed by converging side sheets and end sheets defining a transverse opening; and pivoted transverse door for each transverse opening for selectively opening and closing and closed by a pivoted door, the pivoted door having a pivot axis perpendicular to a longitudinal length of the railcar, and lateral deflectors on lateral sides of the doors with each of the deflectors having a side face extending above an interior facing surface of the doors upon which laden flows with the door in the open position. A method of retrofitting hopper railcars to include deflectors is also disclosed.