Patent Application
20240067236
The present invention relates to a railway vehicle provided with collision-protecting crushable areas.
As known, as defined by relevant safety standards, during their life service rail vehicles have to withstand determined levels of loads and mechanical efforts, for instance those that may be caused by collisions.
To this end, railway vehicles have a structure properly sized and configured to fulfill such requirements.
For instance, in the USA various types of railway cars, including heavy metros, are fitted at their end faces with vertical collision posts and vertical corner posts which are designed to withstand determined static loads and are suitable to face the effects of collisions protecting occupants from possible injuries.
Although such known solutions provide a good level of protection, there are some aspects worth of further improvements.
For example, railway vehicles of the type above mentioned have a central door at both their end faces, wherein a couple of collisions posts are positioned at the respective door; thus, the space to realize a cab for the driver is located on a side relative to the central door, and at a certain height from the ground level.
When such railway vehicles are in service, the driver's cab can be exposed to collisions with other railway vehicles or, when operating along a main railroad, even with big obstacles, such as trucks, pick-ups, et cetera, e.g. at grade crossings.
In these circumstances the corner posts and the collision posts have to bear also the dynamic loads generated at the impact location and may suffer excessive deformation; in particular, in view of its position, the driver's cab may be exposed to potentially dangerous situations.
Hence, it is evident from the above that there is room and desire for further improving safety of railway vehicles when incurring in collisions.
The present disclosure is aimed at providing a solution to this end and provides a railway vehicle comprising:
Detailed characteristics and advantages will become apparent from the description of some preferred but not exclusive exemplary embodiments of a railway vehicle according to the present disclosure, illustrated only by way of non-limitative examples with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
It should be noted that in the detailed description that follows, identical or similar components, either from a structural and/or functional point of view, may have the same or different reference numerals, regardless of whether they are shown in different embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be also noted that in order to clearly and concisely describe the present disclosure, the drawings may not necessarily be to scale and certain features of the disclosure may be shown in somewhat schematic form.
Further, when the term “adapted” or “arranged” or “configured” or “shaped”, or “set”, or any similar term is used herein while referring to any component as a whole, or to any part of a component, or to a combination of components, it has to be understood that it means and encompasses correspondingly either the structure, and/or configuration and/or form and/or positioning.
In addition, when the term “about” or “substantial” or “substantially” is used herein, it has to be understood as encompassing an actual variation of plus or minus 5% with respect to an indicated reference value, or axis, or position, and when the terms transversal or transversally are hereby used, they have to be understood as encompassing a direction non-parallel to the reference part(s) or direction(s)/axis they refer to, and perpendicularity has to be considered a specific case of transverse direction.
The roof 1, the bottom side 3, the two opposite sides 5 and 7, and the front and rear end faces 9 and 11 are mutually assembled to delimit altogether an inner space 13 suitable for accommodating passengers and/or components of the railway vehicles.
The railway vehicle according to the present disclosure comprises also one or more posts 20 which are positioned at at least one of the front and rear end faces 9 and 11, and extend each, along a substantially vertical axis indicated in
Conveniently, the railway vehicle according to the present disclosure comprises also one or more crushable devices, indicated in the figures by the reference number 30, wherein the or each crushable device 30 is connected to and extends, along the substantially vertical axis X, for at least a predominant portion of the vertical extension (along the same direction X) of an associated post 20 of the one or more posts 20.
With the definition of “a predominant portion of the vertical extension” has to be understood that the or each crushable device 30 extends along the vertical axis X for more than 50% of the vertical extension of the post associated therewith.
In one possible embodiment, the or each crushable device 30 is connected to a surface of the associated post 20 oriented outwardly with respect to the inner space.
Such surface, indicated in
According to a possible embodiment, the or each crushable device 30 is connected in a removable way to a surface of the associated post, i.e. the surface 21, oriented outwardly with respect to the inner space 13. For instance, the or each crushable device 30 is bolted to the surface 21 of the associated post 20.
In one possible embodiment, as for example illustrated in
In particular, the at least one diaphragm 40 is positioned, outside the inner space 13, in proximity of and spaced apart from the front face 9 (as illustrated in
According to a possible embodiment, the crushable device 30 is connected in a removable way, for example bolted, to a surface of the diaphragm 40, indicated in
In one possible embodiment, as illustrated in
According to this embodiment, the one or more crushable devices comprise a first crushable device 30 which is interposed between and is connected to the first collision post 20A and the diaphragm 40, and a second crushable device 30 which is interposed between and is connected to the second collision post 20B and the diaphragm 40.
In particular, the first and second collision posts 20A and 20B are positioned at the sides of the opening 12 and protrudes from the front end face 9 (or likewise from the rear end face 11) inwardly towards the inner space 13 of the carbody frame.
In one possible embodiment, and as illustrated in the figures, at least one crushable device 30 of the one or more crushable devices 30 comprises a frame 32 which extends vertically along the substantially vertical axis and has a U- or C-shaped when seen in cross section, i.e. in a plan transversal to the vertical axis X.
In yet a possible embodiment, the at least one crushable device 30 of the one or more crushable devices further comprises a plurality of plates 34, having for instance a substantially square or rectangular shape, which are connected to the U- or C-shaped frame 32.
In one possible embodiment, all crushable devices 30 used comprise the above indicated frame 32 and the plurality of plates 34 mutually assembled as above indicated.
In particular, the walls of the frame 32 embrace an inner space 33 and the plates 34 are located in such a space 33 and are connected to the frame 32, e.g. welded, spaced apart from each other, for example at substantially regular intervals, in sequence along the substantially vertical axis X.
All crushable devices 30 used in the railway vehicle according to the invention can have the above indicated configuration, namely the frame 32 with the associated plates 34.
According to a possible embodiment, the one or more posts 20 comprise at least a first corner post and a second corner posts, which are indicated in
Clearly, if desired and/or according to the applications, crushable devices 30 can be also associated to such corner posts 30, in a way similar to that above described in relation to the collision posts 20A and 20B, e.g. connecting them, in a releasable manner, to a front surface of the corner posts themselves.
As previously mentioned, in the railway vehicle according to the present disclosure, what illustrated in
Hence, it is evident that railway vehicle according to the present disclosure has a structure offering an improved resistance to collisions, capable also to properly face collisions with big obstacles at grade crossings, thus increasing the overall safety.
These results are obtained with a solution relatively easy to be implemented and which does not require an excessive redesigning/reworking of the current structure of cardody frames.
Further, in case of collisions where only the crushable devices can result deformed, then the devices or parts thereof deformed can be easily removed and replaced with new ones.
The railway vehicle thus conceived is susceptible of modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept as defined in particular by the appended claims; for example, the shape and/or position of some of the components described or parts thereof, for instance the frame 32 and or the plates 34, may be varied provided that they are still compatible for the tasks foreseen for them in the railway vehicle according to the present disclosure. If plural crushable devices 30 are used, they may have for instance a different extension or length along the vertical axis X from each other, depending for example on their positioning. The railway vehicle can be of any type of rail car, wagon, carriage (or any similar or equivalent definition), suitable for implementing the peculiar aspects of the solution previously described. All the details may furthermore be replaced with technically equivalent elements.
