Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 6
Claim 1
Independent Claim
185 words
A hatch cover and lock assembly for use in sealing the hatch of a railroad hopper car, the hatch having a coaming including an upper lip, the assembly comprising, in combination; a. a cover member having oppositely disposed top and bottom surfaces and including means for hingedly attaching said cover member to the car; b. an elastomeric gasket fixedly attached to said bottom surface adjacent the periphery of said cover, located to be compressible between said cover and the upper lip; c. a lock ring having a pair of end portions, said lock ring adapted to engage, the peripheral portion of said top surface and the underside of said upper lip, causing said cover to approach the lip, compressing said gasket therebetween; d. clamping means attached to said end portions of said lock ring for clamping said lock ring into tight sealing engagement about the periphery of said cover; and e. mounting means for movably mounting said lock ring in a substantially uniformly spaced relationship with said cover member, while allowing for generally radial movement of said lock ring with respect to said cover member.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
185 words
A hatch cover and lock assembly for use in sealing the hatch of a railroad hopper car, the hatch having a coaming including an upper lip, the assembly comprising, in combination; a. a cover member having oppositely disposed top and bottom surfaces and including means for hingedly attaching said cover member to the car; b. an elastomeric gasket fixedly attached to said bottom surface adjacent the periphery of said cover, located to be compressible between said cover and the upper lip; c. a lock ring having a pair of end portions, said lock ring adapted to engage, the peripheral portion of said top surface and the underside of said upper lip, causing said cover to approach the lip, compressing said gasket therebetween; d. clamping means attached to said end portions of said lock ring for clamping said lock ring into tight sealing engagement about the periphery of said cover; and e. mounting means for movably mounting said lock ring in a substantially uniformly spaced relationship with said cover member, while allowing for generally radial movement of said lock ring with respect to said cover member.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
52 words
The assembly of claim 1 wherein said cover is circular and said lock ring is generally annular and has a generally U-shaped cross section with oppositely disposed top and bottom flanges diverging and adapted to slidingly engage, respectively, the peripheral portion of said top surface and the underside of the upper lip.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
22 words
The assembly of claim 1 wherein said clamping means comprises an over-center clamp and a handle member for actuating said over-center clamp.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
25 words
The assembly of claim 1 wherein said cover member is formed from a fiber reinforced plastic material and includes a plurality of integral reinforcing ribs.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
57 words
The assembly of claim 1 wherein said mounting means comprises at least one retainer plate fixedly attached to said lock ring, slidingly engaging the top surface of said cover member and including a slot acting in cooperation with a bolt threaded into said cover member to limit the movement of said retainer plate to a linear path.