Long travel dual sill cushioning arrangement for railroad cars

Claim 1

IN A RAILWAY VEHICLE INCLUDING A WHEEL FRAME STRUCTURE, A DRAFT AND BUFFING COLUMN CARRIED BY SAID FRAME STRUCTURE AND INCLUDING MEANS FOR SECURING A COUPLER AT EACH END THEREOF, CUSHIONING MEANS OPERATIVELY INTERPOSED BETWEEN STOP MEANS FIXED ON SAID FRAME STRUCTURE AND SAID COLUMN FOR CUSHIONING LONGITUDINAL IMPACTS APPLIED TO THE COUPLERS, THE IMPROVEMENT WHEREIN: SAID COLUMN COMPRISES A PAIR OF SECTIONS POSITIONED IN SPACED APART RELATION IN LONGITUDINALLY ALIGNMENT AND MOUNTED FOR MOVEMENT LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER AND TO SAID FRAME STRUCTURE, SAID COLUMNS EACH INCLUDE KEYING MEANS AT THE ADJACENT ENDS THEREOF, AND FORMED TO DEFINE A CUSHION POCKET OUTBOARD OF SAID KEYING MEANS, A RESILIENT CUSHIONING DEVICE MOUNTED IN EACH OF SAID CUSHION POCKETS IN ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID STOP MEANS SO AS TO BE OPERATIVE TO ABSORB DRAFT IMPACTS APPLIED ON SAID COLUMN WHEN SAID COLUMN SECTIONS ARE IN SAID SPACED POSITION, A HYDRAULIC CUSHIONING MEANS COMPRISING A SELF-CONTAINED HYDRAULIC UNIT DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID SECTIONS, A HYDRAULIC FLUID FILLED CYLINDER, A PISTON ASSEMBLY RECIPROCABLE THEREIN, AND MEANS ARRANGED TO DISPLACE FLUID IN A MANNER TO ACHIEVE A SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT FORCE TRAVEL CHARACTERISTIC WHEN SAID CYLINDER AND SAID PISTON ASSEMBLY ARE RECIPROCATED RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER UPON BUFF IMPACT APPLIED ON SAID COLUMN, AND HAVING A LENGTH OF TRAVEL SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO SAID SPACED DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID SECTIONS, MEANS FOR DETACHABLY KEYING SAID CYLINDER FOR MOVEMENT WITH ONE OF SAID COLUMNS, MEANS FOR DETACHABLY KEYING SAID PISTON MEMBER FOR MOVEMENT WITH THE OTHER OF SAID COLUMNS, AND RETURN SPRING MEANS DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID CYLINDER AND SAID PISTON ASSEMBLY FOR RETURNING SAID COLUMN SECTIONS TO A SPACED POSITION AFTER A BUFF IMPACT HAS BEEN DISSIPATED.