A railroad car truck including one or two new side frames that each includes one or more of a plurality of different improvements that individually and in various combinations reduce, inhibit, or minimize the likelihood of stress fractures or cracks in the side frame.

A railcar truck and adapter pad system for placement between a roller bearing and side frame pedestal roof of a three-piece railcar truck. Many different features of the pad and/or the adapter-pad interface are configured to improve stiffness characteristics to satisfy both curving and high speed performance of the railcar truck.

A railcar truck and adapter pad system for placement between a roller bearing and side frame pedestal roof of a three-piece railcar truck. Many different features of the pad and/or the adapter-pad interface are configured to improve stiffness characteristics to satisfy both curving and high speed performance of the railcar truck.

A truck assembly for a rail vehicle includes at least one side frame including at least one lightener hole. At least one strain gage is disposed within the lightener hole(s). The strain gage(s) is configured to detect forces exerted into or onto the truck assembly. A method of detecting forces exerted into or onto a truck assembly of a rail vehicle includes disposing at least one strain gage within at least one lightener hole of at least one side frame of a truck assembly of the rail vehicle, and detecting the forces by the strain gage(s).

A railroad car truck including one or two new side frames that each includes one or more of a plurality of different improvements that individually and in various combinations reduce, inhibit, or minimize the likelihood of stress fractures or cracks in the side frame.

Disclosed is a rail vehicle including at least one car and at least one bogie carrying the car. The bogie includes a chassis and a secondary suspension system between the chassis and the car. The secondary suspension system includes a spring assembly mounted between the chassis and the car.The secondary suspension system includes a actuator, provided with a piston extending at least partially between an upper stop secured to the car and a lower stop secured to the chassis, and a supply device of the actuator.The supply device of the actuator is able to supply the actuator such that the distance between the upper and lower stops is kept constant by the actuator.

A railroad car truck for a railroad freight car, such as an autorack car, has a bolster mounted cross-wise between two sideframes. The bolster ends are mounted on respective spring groups carried by the sideframes. The bolster can translate laterally relative to the sideframes. The side frames are mounted to swing laterally relative to the wheel sets, and hence relative to the rails. Resistance to lateral deflection is provided by the resistance of the sideframes to the pendulum swinging motion, and by shear in the spring groups. The truck has a doubled damper arrangement of dampers in a four-cornered layout at each end of the bolster, giving a flexing resistance to yaw between the sideframes and the bolster ends. The doubled damper arrangement works against large wear plates mounted on the sideframe columns. The large wear plates are mounted normal to the dampers and square to the sideframes.

A railroad car truck for a railroad freight car, such as an autorack car, has a bolster mounted cross-wise between two sideframes. The bolster ends are mounted on respective spring groups carried by the sideframes. The bolster can translate laterally relative to the sideframes. The side frames are mounted to swing laterally relative to the wheel sets, and hence relative to the rails. Resistance to lateral deflection is provided by the resistance of the sideframes to the pendulum swinging motion, and by shear in the spring groups. The truck has a doubled damper arrangement of dampers in a four-cornered layout at each end of the bolster, giving a flexing resistance to yaw between the sideframes and the bolster ends. The doubled damper arrangement works against large wear plates mounted on the sideframe columns. The large wear plates are mounted normal to the dampers and square to the sideframes.

A spring arrangement for a vehicle, particularly a rail vehicle with at least one wagon and at least one bogie, wherein so as to create favorable construction conditions the spring arrangement includes at least one suspension spring, at least one pre-stressed damping spring, a contact body connected to the damping spring, and at least one first auxiliary spring, where a first longitudinal axis of the suspension spring, a second longitudinal axis of the damping spring, a third longitudinal axis of the contact body, and a fourth longitudinal axis of the first auxiliary spring are arranged parallel to each other, and where the contact body is arranged between the damping spring and the first auxiliary spring such that a low level of overall rigidity of the spring arrangement is obtained for a height adjustment of the vehicle.

A spring arrangement for a vehicle, particularly a rail vehicle with at least one wagon and at least one bogie, wherein so as to create favorable construction conditions the spring arrangement includes at least one suspension spring, at least one pre-stressed damping spring, a contact body connected to the damping spring, and at least one first auxiliary spring, where a first longitudinal axis of the suspension spring, a second longitudinal axis of the damping spring, a third longitudinal axis of the contact body, and a fourth longitudinal axis of the first auxiliary spring are arranged parallel to each other, and where the contact body is arranged between the damping spring and the first auxiliary spring such that a low level of overall rigidity of the spring arrangement is obtained for a height adjustment of the vehicle.