Uncoupling device for railroad cars

Claim 1

In a railroad car adapted to ride on track rails and having a coupler mounted at one end thereof for movement relative to the car in response to buff and draft forces and including a lock lifter for uncoupling the coupler, and an uncoupling device including a lever assembly comprising a lock lifter member including a hook eye at one end thereof operatively engaging the lock lifter and suppoRted by the coupler for pivotal movement about a pivot point to lift the lock lifter to uncouple the coupler, a handle member including a handle portion at one end thereof pivotally secured to the car to one side of the end of the car to swing about a pivot point to move said hook eye portion to operate said lock lifter, and a housing telescopingly connecting said lock lifter and handle members in cranking relation therebetween, whereby the lock lifter member hook eye portion may be pivoted about its pivot point to lift the lock lifter by swinging said handle member about its pivot point, the improvement wherein: said pivot point of said handle member is approximately at the height of the car center line of draft above top of rail, said handle member and said lock lifter member including rectilinear portions telescopingly received in said housing in side-by-side substantially parallel relation, with said housing being generally rectilinear in longitudinal configuration and defining a separate guide tube for each of said member rectilinear portions, with said guide tubes each defining a bore of quadrilateral transverse cross-sectional configuration and being in side by side coplanar relation and the respective member rectilinear portions operatively received in the respective guide tubes through one end of same, said assembly being mounted on the car at said pivot points for free swinging movement about an axis extending through said pivot points for lifting the lock lifter and being free of connection with the car intermediate said pivot points, said handle member being secured against telescoping movement relative to the car at its said pivot point, said lever assembly being downwardly angled below said axis intermediate said handle portion and hook eye portion thereof to dispose said lever assembly below the path of movement of the interlock structure of type F couplers in the event of a passed coupler impact, said lock lifter member between its said hook eye portion and its said rectilinear portion defining an upwardly directed gooseneck portion having the lower end of same merging into said rectilinear portion of said lock lifter member, said housing and said handle and lock lifter member portions inclining downwardly from said axis toward said gooseneck portions, said gooseneck portion and the downward inclination of said housing and said handle and lock lifter member rectilinear portions defining said downward angulation of said assembly, said housing under the action of gravity being disposed to have the lower end of same adjacent said lower end of said gooseneck portion, said housing being free floating relative to said handle and lock lifter members and having a generally quadrilateral transverse cross-sectional configuration throughout its length that is elongate, with said housing being oriented such that the long dimension of said transverse cross-sectional configuration is horizontally disposed, whereby said lower end of said housing is substantially free of projection below said lower end of said gooseneck portion, with said handle member rectilinear portion being disposed in the housing guide tube on the side of said housing that faces the car end and said lock lifter member rectilinear portion being disposed in the other housing guide tube, said handle and lock lifter members at the other ends thereof each including a shoe, with the respective shoes extending longitudinally thereof and in sliding relation with the respective guide tubes of said housing, said shoes having a transverse cross-sectional configuration that substantially complements that of the guide tube in which the shoes respectively operate, and having a dimension transversely of said housing in said housing plane that at least approximates the dimension of the respective guide tubes transversely of said housing in a direction normally of said plane, with the center of gravity of said assembly having a height above raiL that is at least approximately the height above rail of said lock lifter member pivot point, whereby said assembly is free of tendencies to rock under train action in the direction which would lift the lock lifter free of mechanical restraint.