The present disclosure relates to a locomotive system, and more particularly to a locomotive system configured to run on railroads of varying axle load capacities.
Axle load capacities of railroads vary from one railroad to another. A first railroad may be able to withstand a heavy axle load of a locomotive while a second railroad may be able to withstand a lighter axle load as compared to the first railroad. However, each axle of a locomotive may need to conform to the axle load capacity requirements of the railroad at all instants of time.
Typically, industrial locomotives may be used to pull cargo containers. Conventional methods of complying cargo containers with two or more railroads of different axle load capacities may typically involve transferring contents from larger cargo containers to smaller containers or vice-versa so that individual axle loads associated with each container may comply with the new axle load capacity of the onward railroad. However, an axle load on each axle of the locomotive may still remain unchanged and hence be non-compliant with the axle load capacity of the railroad. Hence, an overall weight of the locomotive may also need to be modified in order to make the individual axles of the locomotive compliant with the varying axle load capacities of the railroad.
U.S. application Ser. No. 12/899,670 relates to an improved rail system fuel tender for use with one or more railroad locomotives capable of transporting a plurality of fuel containers. The fuel containers are suitable for containing pressurized fuel and directly fueling the one or more locomotives. The improved fuel tender may be powered by the locomotives to increase tractive effort, and the fuel containers may be separately fillable and separately removable from the fuel tender.
In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a locomotive system configured to run on a railroad. The locomotive system includes two or more axles, a chassis disposed on the axles, an engine connected to the chassis, a first fuel tank, and a second fuel tank. The first fuel tank is configured to supply fuel to the engine. The second fuel tank is configured to be selectively coupled to the chassis. The second fuel tank is further configured to selectively exchange fuel with the first fuel tank.
In another aspect, the present disclosure provides a locomotive system configured to run on a railroad. The locomotive system includes two or more axles, a chassis disposed on the axles, an engine connected to the chassis, a first fuel tank, and a second fuel tank. The first fuel tank is configured to supply fuel to the engine and impose a first laden weight on the axles. The second fuel tank is configured to be selectively coupled to the chassis and selectively exchange fuel with the first fuel tank. The second fuel tank has a second laden weight imposed on the axles such that an axle load on each of the axles lies between a maximum and minimum axle load capacity of the railroad.
In another aspect, the present disclosure provides a method of regulating an axle load on an axle of a locomotive. The method includes providing a first laden weight of a first fuel tank to the axle. The method includes selectively providing a second laden weight of a second fuel tank to the axle such that the axle load on the axle defined together by the first and the second laden weights lies between a maximum and minimum axle load capacity of the railroad.
Other features and aspects of this disclosure will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.
The present disclosure relates to a locomotive system configured to run on railroads of varying axle load capacities.
The locomotive system 100 includes two or more axles 102. In an embodiment as shown in
As shown in
The first fuel tank 110 is configured to supply fuel to the engine 108. The first fuel tank 110 may be fluidly connected to the engine 108 via an inlet line 114. In an embodiment, one or more filters 115 and a pump 116 may be disposed in the inlet line 114. The filters 115 may remove any impurities such as dirt or dust particles present in the fuel while the pump 116 may suck, pressurize, and deliver the fuel to injectors (not shown) of the engine 108.
The second fuel tank 112 is configured to be selectively coupled to the chassis 106 and selectively exchange fuel with the first fuel tank 110. In an embodiment as shown in
In an embodiment as shown in
In an embodiment, the lifting adapters 128 may be rigidly connected to the body 124. The lifting adapters 128 may be configured to releasably engage with a lifting implement of a machine. In an embodiment as shown in
In an embodiment as shown in
For the purposes of understanding the various embodiments of the present disclosure, a railroad 300 of heavy axle load capacity is shown in
In an embodiment as shown in
In an embodiment as shown in
In another embodiment as shown in
As evident from the disclosure pertaining to
In an embodiment, the axle load capacity of the railroad 300/400 may be defined by a range from a maximum axle load capacity to a minimum axle load capacity. Therefore, in various embodiments disclosed herein, the first laden weight and the second laden weight may be implemented such that the axle load of the locomotive system 100 may lie between the maximum and minimum axle load capacity of the railroad 300/400.
Further, in the preceding embodiment, the second laden weight of the second fuel tank 112 may be affected based on an extent of refueling performed on the second fuel tank 112. Therefore, a person having ordinary skill in the art may acknowledge that the extent of refueling of the second fuel tank 112 may be chosen such that the axle loads of the locomotive system 100 lies between the increased maximum and minimum axle load capacity of the railroad 400 of
However, in the embodiment of
In an embodiment, selectively providing the second laden weight may be based on an anticipated change in the maximum and minimum axle load capacity from railroad 300/400 to railroad 400/300. In one embodiment, providing the second laden weight may include decoupling the second fuel tank 112 based on the anticipated decrease in the maximum and minimum axle load capacity from railroad 300 to railroad 400. In another embodiment, selectively providing the second laden weight may include coupling the second fuel tank 112 based on the anticipated increase in the maximum and minimum axle load capacity from railroad 400 to railroad 300.
In one embodiment, the method may further include transferring fuel from the first fuel tank 110 to the second fuel tank 112 based on an anticipated decrease in the maximum and minimum axle load capacity from railroad 300 to railroad 400. In another embodiment, the method may further include transferring fuel from the second fuel tank 112 to the first fuel tank 110 based on an anticipated increase in the maximum and minimum axle load capacity from railroad 400 to railroad 300.
In an embodiment, the method may further include refilling the second fuel tank 112 based on the anticipated increase in the maximum and minimum axle load capacity from railroad 400 to railroad 300. As disclosed earlier, the extent of refueling of the second fuel tank 112 may be varied such that the axle load on each axle 102 lies between the increased maximum and minimum axle load capacity of the railroad 300.
Axle load capacities of railroads vary from one railroad to another. A first railroad may be able to withstand a heavy axle load of a locomotive while a second railroad may be able to withstand a lighter axle load as compared to the first railroad. However, each axle of a locomotive may need to confirm to the axle load capacity requirements of the railroad at all instants of time.
Typically, industrial locomotives used to pull cargo containers may comply with different axle load capacities of one or more railroads by involving a transfer of contents from larger cargo containers to smaller containers or vice-versa such that the axle loads associated with the containers comply with the anticipated axle load capacity of the onward railroad. However, the axle load on each axle of the locomotive may still remain unchanged and hence be non-compliant with the axle load capacity of the railroad.
The axle loads of the locomotive may also manifest themselves as an adhesive force between wheels of the locomotive and the railroad. When individual axle loads of the locomotive are lesser than the minimum axle load capacity of the railroad, insufficient adhesion may be present between the wheels and the railroad. Consequently, the wheels associated with the respective axles may slip on the railroad while the locomotive may use excess fuel to overcome the slip. Conversely, when individual axle loads of the locomotive exceed the maximum axle load capacity of the railroad, the railroad may be subject to premature failure.
In the locomotive system 100 of the present disclosure, the axle loads may be varied by selectively coupling the second fuel tank 112 to the chassis 106. A flexibility to vary the axle loads may make the axles 102 of the locomotive system 100 confirm to the anticipated axle load capacity of the onward railroad.
A finer degree of control may further be achieved while varying the axle loads by choosing an extent of refueling the second fuel tank 112 or choosing an amount of fuel to be transferred from the first fuel tank 110 to the second fuel tank 112. The finer degree of control may be helpful in specific embodiments where the axle load capacity of the railroad may be defined by the maximum and minimum axle load capacity respectively.
In various embodiments disclosed herein, coupling, de-coupling, or refueling of the second fuel tank 112 may be performed by an operator at a station or a suitable yard. Further, exchanging fuel between the first and the second fuel tanks 110, 112 may be accomplished at the stations/yards or may even be accomplished when the locomotive system 100 is in operation. Thus, the locomotive system 100 disclosed herein may be easy to use, and therefore, may help an operator to conveniently vary the axle loads of a locomotive system 100 while the axle load capacity of the railroad changes.
While aspects of the present disclosure have been particularly shown and described with reference to the embodiments above, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various additional embodiments may be contemplated by the modification of the disclosed machine, systems and methods without departing from the spirit and scope of what is disclosed. Such embodiments should be understood to fall within the scope of the present disclosure as determined based upon the claims and any equivalents thereof.
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