Claims
- 1. An overhead container transfer system for unloading and loading transportation vehicles passing a station, including a lower guideway having at least one transportation vehicle thereon, an overhead track run over said guideway for vertical transfer including a slope down and an opposite slope up, at least two transfer containers, a said container being on said vehicle when approaching said station track to meet said slope up from bottom, carrier means for engaging and suspending said containers to travel said overhead track and up said slope, vertical coupling means on said vehicle for pushing said container up said slope up above said vehicle, said overhead track being sloped up to height to carry container above the vehicle and any load thereon, conveying means above said vehicle and along said station track to receive and move the container lifted out to stop for transfer at the station, and accelerating means for starting and accelerating the second said container on said station track including a dip in said track to lower the outgoing container to coupling height and reach coupling speed ahead of coupling alignment with the vehicle to be set on the vehicle, said coupling means on the vehicle engaging said container at safe coupling speed and aligning container over spot to set on vehicle and hold this alignment while pushing container to and along where said track is sloped down to set container on the vehicle.
- 2. A system as in claim 1 wherein said slopes each have two rails on each side for one end and at least one rail spaced at wheel base length for suspending other end of said container substantially level.
- 3. A system as in claim 1, said conveying means being a belt conveyor, and means for driving it at speed of vehicle as vehicle approaches and means for decelerating the conveyor when container is set thereon to stop container at unloading-loading spot.
- 4. A system as in claim 1, said accelerating means being a ropehaul above container on station track and having dog for pushing container and snubber for preventing container from bounding ahead so vehicle can engage the container from below, and means for timing start of ropehaul so container reaches coupling speed just ahead of alignment for coupling with the vehicle.
- 5. In a system as in claim 1, said vehicle comprising at least one railway car having a top with hole therein for receiving and dispatching said containers, said coupling means being a container catepult including a track along length of and on top of said top, a container coupling carriage on said catepult track for latching a container therein horizontally, catepult means for cushioning and aligning a container caught in said carriage to align with said opening for transfer of container into said car, and control means for the catepult to move said carriage to front of said car when said carriage and a spot for a container through said opening are empty to position carriage at front for maximum cushioning travel when receiving a container.
- 6. In a system as in claim 1, a safety stop track at end of station track normally connected thereto by hinged descending slope rails of the station track counterbalanced to be lifted to align safety track for stopping container, latch means to normally latch said descending slope rails up, means on vehicle to detect container on station truck when aligned and coupled for transfer onto vehicle ahead of the transfer-in dip for controlling said latch to release for transfer of the container to empty spot on vehicle.
- 7. A system as in claim 1, said overhead track having rails spaced at two gages, one for front and one for rear of said carrier means and switches hinged to swing vertically in inner rails at top of slope so inner wheels and outer wheels take inner and outer rails respectively and outer wheels pass inner rails by wheels controlling the switches to maintain the container substantially level on the slopes.
- 8. In a system as in claim 1, means for detachably securing said carrier means above and to said containers to travel with container on said vehicle but removeable for container to be carried separate.
- 9. In a system as in claim 8, said carrier means having frame having hooks for engaging a container when set thereon and for releasing a container when set down the same vertical travel thereon, vertical coupling on the train, said frame horizontally interlocking with the vertical coupling on the vehicle to prevent shifting out of alignment on the vehicle.
- 10. A system as in claim 1, said carrier means being a carrier for a load and having a frame with hooks for automatically engaging at least one load when lowered empty on the load and for releasing the load when the load is set down and the hook lowered enough to clear from under the load.
- 11. A container transfer system as in claim 1, said overhead track having said transfer slopes that maintain a container on the carrier means thereon substantially level, the slopes comprising a track for each end of the carrier means, the track on inner face of the slope being wide gage outboard the container, the track at outer or front face of the slope being above the container, this latter track is provided for the slopes off center equally and oppositely at opposite sloping slopes to carry either end of said carrier means outward over slope.
- 12. A system as in claim 11, said carrier means being the top portion of said container, said track being open ended at bottom of transfer slopes for container to release, the track on inner face of slope extending substantially horizontally out from the bottom of transfer slope to align the container ahead of the slope up.
- 13. A system as in claim 11, carrier means for said track being container carriers and automatic hooks thereon for engaging, suspending and releasing the container therefrom.
- 14. A container transfer system as in claim 1, said way being a railroad track, said vehicles being trains, said carrier means being container carriers suspended therefrom, said station track including classification tracks for storage of said containers on said carriers for particular trains, ladder tracks connecting ends of said classification tracks, two transfer runs of said station track connected to said ladder tracks and run over each railway track to be served, each run in parallel, both running in succession for a transfer run over the railway track, each transfer run having a double dip down and up for substantially level transfer of containers to and from trains passing the station, empty carriers on said station track ahead of said first dip and carriers each having container for train and waiting on station track ahead of second dip according to train direction, means for selectively coupling successive carriers to cars in train passing under for transfer run according to transfer requirements of the cars, means for moving the carriers to and from the transfer dip runs, hook means on said carriers to engage container when lowered thereto by either said dip and to release container when set down on car by either said dip the same vertical movement for engaging or releasing container, and means for loading and unloading the carriers of containers at the station for local delivery and storage.
- 15. A system as in claim 14, said means for loading and unloading the carriers being a traveling gantry having trackage aligning said station track for receiving and delivering carriers thereon and hoisting means to lift and lower said trackage on the gantry to pick up and set down a container by means of a carrier on the trackage of the gantry, and means for moving carriers off and on the gantry when aligning the station track and for positioning on the gantry.
- 16. A system as in claim 14, said means for moving including propulsion rails in said station track system to accelerate and retard said carriers.
- 17. A system as in claim 1, said guideway being a railway track, said transportation vehicle being a railway car.
- 18. In a system as in claim 1, said vehicle having a berth for each of a plurality of containers, said vertical coupling means being a coupling carriage on said vehicle for catching a said container along said station track and aligning it with a berth before said slope down to lower the container into the empty berth.
- 19. A system as in claim 1, said vehicle having lift frame to receive and hold container and lower on vehicle to clear under said station track, and controls to lift said frame selectively ahead of said slope up to engage the container thereon with said station track for transfer out.
- 20. In a system as in claim 1, said carrier means having outboard wheels above each end of the container and an inboard wheel offset transversely equally and oppositely above each end to engage said station track, said track having outboard rails and an inboard rail added a wheel base span behind the outboard rails on said slope up for inboard wheel at rear to engage on slope up and an inboard rail added a wheel span ahead of outboard rails on said slope down for said inboard wheel at front to engage on said slope down, the outboard wheels at opposite ends engaging the track where substantially level.
Parent Case Info
This is a continuation, of application Ser. No. 405,825 filed Oct. 12, 1976 now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (2)
Number |
Name |
Date |
Kind |
3910196 |
Denenburg |
Oct 1975 |
|
3956994 |
Barry |
May 1976 |
|
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
405825 |
Oct 1973 |
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