Multi-purpose railway cars of the piggyback type incorporating improved hand brake mechanisms

Claim 1

A RAILWAY CAR ESPECIALLY ADAPTED TO TRANSPORT SIMULTANEOUSLY TWO ROAD SEMI-TRAILERS AND COMPRISING AN ELONTATED LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING FRAME HAVING A LENGTH BETWEEN THE OPPOSITE ENDS THEREOF IN EXCESS OF ABOUT 85 FEET, A PAIR OF WHEELED TRUCKS RESPECTIVELY SUPPORTING THE OPPOSITE ENDS OF SAID FRAME, A PAIR OF BRAKE MECHANISMS RESPECTIVELY INCORPORATED IN SAID TRUCKS, BRAKE RIGGING CARRIED BY SAID FRAME FOR SIMULTANEOUSLY CONTROLLING SAID BRAKE MECHANISMS, A PAIR OF ELONGATED LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING AND LATERALLY SPACED-APART TREADWAYS RESPECTIVELY CARRIED BY THE OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID FRAME AND ADPATED RESPECTIVELY TO SUPPORT THE LATERALLY SPACED-APART ROAD WHEELS OF EACH OF TWO ROAD SEMI-TRAILERS MOUNTED IN TANDEM RELATION ON TOP OF SAID FRAME, THE LONGITUDINAL DISTANCE BETWEEN THE OPPOSITE ENDS OF EACH OF SAID TREADWAYS BEING AT LEAST ABOUT 85 FEET AND THE LATERAL DISTANCE BETWEEN THE OPPOSITE OUTER SIDES OF SAID TREADWAYS BEING AT LEAST ABOUT 100 INCHES, BRAKE ACTUATING MECHANISM CARRIED BY ONE SIDE OF SAID FRAME ADJACENT TO ONE END THEREOF AND DISPOSED BELOW THE ADJACENT ONE OF SAID TREADWAYS AND POSITIONED LATERALLY INWARDLY OF THE ADJACENT OUTER SIDE OF SAID ONE TREADWAYS, SAID BRAKE ACTUATING MECHANISM INCLUDING A LATERALLY EXTENDING AND ROTATABLY MOUNTED OPERATING SHAFT, AN OPERATIVE CONNECTION BETWEEN SAID OPERATING SHAFT AND SAID BRAKE RIGGING, A LATERALLY EXTENDING JACK SHAFT CARRIED BY SAID ONE SIDE OF SAID FRAME AND MOUNTED THEREUPON FOR ROTATION ABOUT ITS OWN AXIS, SAID JACK SHAFT BEING POSITIONED ADJACENT TO SAID BRAKE ACTUATING MECHANISM AND DISPOSED BELOW SAID ONE TREADWAY, AN OPERATIVE CONNECTION BETWEEN SAID JACK SHAFT AND SAID OPERATING SHAFT, A MAST CARRIED BY SAID ONE SIDE OF SAID FRAME LATERALLY OUTWARDLY OF SAID ONE TREADWAY AND MOUNTED ADJACENT TO THE INNER END THEREOF FOR ROTATION IN AN UPSTANDING PLANE ABOUT SAID JACK SHAFT AND BETWEEN A GENERALLY HORIZONTAL RETRACTED POSITION AND A GENERALLY VERTICAL PROJECTED POSITION, THE OUTER END OF SAID MAST BEING DISPOSED ADJACENT TO THE TOP OF SAID ONE TREADWAY WHEN SAID MAST OCCUPIES ITS RETRACTED POSITION AND THE